Manuel said:
"This is great news! I hope all cities pass this into law.The practice of using plastic bags just to quickly dispose of them has been going on far t..." [read]
Jay Knecht said:
"What are the performance stats for the Son of Max? ..." [read]
gazelle said:
"@ Dallas:
The book, and the supplementary videos in the "How It All Ends" youtube series, address this in detail, but I'll try to paraphrase:..." [read]
Barry said:
"Kofi Annan has about as much of a clue about electric cars and developing countries as Ann Ann the Panda.
He underestimates the ingenuity o..." [read]
JJ said:
"Very cool. I didn't thought that biodesel might be our future fuel...." [read]
Derek said:
""I guarantee you this will spark huge debates around the world," she said. "We have to delve into this in a way that hasn't been done in a long tim..." [read]
Cards can be a beautiful way to commemorate everything from a birthday to a book deal, but they're as transient as gifts come; unless its hand-painted, a card rarely sees more than a month on display before it hits the trash. These Bloom and Grow cards from UncommonGoods are designed with this short lifetime in mind, and in true cradle-to-cradle spirit, feed the earth once they're discarded. Seeds are embedded in each card, and with a little patience and water, will bloom into healthy flowers after the card is buried. While building an entire garden from these cards might only be possible for the super-popular, they're perfect for anyone who will actually take the time to make the seeds sprout. I only wish there was an option to send local seeds- perhaps you could choose varsities based on the recipient's climate region.
Disclaimer: I was employed by UncommonGoods in 2006...
Check out recycled rings jewellery range, gorgeous and original, totally planet friendly and without the internal conflict that comes with wearing diamonds and other mined gemstones. Other conflict free jewellery includes the GreenKarat and Liana Kabels designs. We love this anti-diamond ring, the envy ring and the best friend ring, each ring is reconstructed from found jewelry and hand sewn/embroidered and embellished. ::recycled rings ::via modish and CRAFTzine. ...
Finally after all these years I might get a picture up on Cute Overload. I mean, who could resist those baleful eyes staring at you, making you ask "how much is that discarded Japanese kitchenware (spoons, kettles, cups etc) recycled into that doggie in the window?" ...
We spied Sugar the Treats Truck, which we've covered before, next to the Barnes & Noble on 23rd and 6th.
The Red Hook, Brooklyn-based mobile retail bakery runs on compressed natural gas (CNG), which produces less exhaust and carbon emissions than diesel and gasoline do. While actual emissions will vary with engine design, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that compared with gasoline, CNG offers potential reductions in carbon-monoxide emissions of 90 to 97 percent, as well as reductions in carbon-dioxide emissions by 25 percent. ...
We will most likely see larger than previously expected increases in sea levels over the next century according to a recent study conducted by a team of researchers from the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research at the University of Colorado, Boulder. They anticipate that the global warming-induced melting of mountain glaciers and ice caps will account for the brunt of that rise, as much as 2-3 times more than the amount originally predicted.
The scientists used satellite monitoring to determine the contribution of all land-based ice (except for Greenland and Antarctica's huge ice sheets) to rising sea levels and found that the volume of ice melting into the sea each year from ice caps and glaciers was 100 cubic miles (or 417 cubic km). They determined, however, that this volume had now increased by a further 3 cubic miles each year, prompted by an acceleration in the rate at which the ice caps and glaciers are melting....
Here's one diet plan even you assiduous fad followers have probably never heard about: the "Paleolithic" diet. As the name implies, this diet essentially consists of foods that were regularly consumed by our Stone Age forbears and includes such staples as root vegetables, lean meat, nuts and eggs. Perhaps not surprisingly, given its simplicity and variety, this diet was found to yield significant health benefits in a recent study conducted in Sweden.
Staffan Lindeberg, a physician at Lund University, found that Swedish men with diabetes exhibited a large drop in their blood sugar levels after just 3 months on the "Paleolithic" diet. Of the 29 test subjects with diabetic conditions and heart disease, 14 had their blood sugar return to normal and their glucose tolerance improve by 26% while the rest, whose diet also included dairy products and grains, showed only a 7% improvement in glucose tolerance....
There is often debate about which is greener, washing dishes by hand or with a dishwasher? The discussion will probably end when Bosch's new ultrasonic dishwasher goes on sale. The Patent application claims "A dishwasher machine (1), in particular a domestic dishwasher machine, is described, comprising a washing container (2) and devices for washing items to be washed by means of washing solution, as well as a sound wave generator (5), wherein the sound wave generator (5) is used to generate a sound wave which at least assists the drying process of the items to be washed. In order to achieve the highest possible efficiency of the drying process, the sound wave generator (5) is designed to deliver sound waves of different frequency and/or amplitude."
The New Scientist notes that : "The conventional method is to heat the dishes while they are being washed. The dishes retain thermal energy, which heats any leftover water so that it evaporates quickly once the wash is over.
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Conflict Disclosure: Until recently my day job was working with Royal Homes to promote modern prefab. We commissioned Kohn Shnier Architects to design the small and efficient Q series, which was seen by a Toronto patron of the Arts, who asked for a larger version as a second home for two families in Muskoka, Ontario. I visited the site this week for the first time since the construction and installation, which can be seen here. Another disclosure: I am a terrible photographer and these pictures do not do it justice.
The building is essentially a sixteen foot deep wall; that the maximum width that can go down the road, and Martin Kohn took advantage of this to create the thin, long structure....
The UK government has approved a new scheme for desalination of water from the Thames, for use in London. The £200 million plant will be built in Beckton, east London. It's not a popular plan, though, among environmental campaigners. We've written before about how energy-intensive desalination is and how it can contribute to climate change, and recent plans for a similar plant in Australia came under attack for the same reason.
However, some concessions have been made. The planning authority only approved the scheme if renewable energy sources were used to power the plant, and if the plant only operates during periods of drought. A more cynical reporter could mention that it is still using power that could be used elsewhere, and that 'periods of drought' cover much of the year currently anyway. Once built, these rules could be stretched.
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Music festivals will always have a huge impact on the environment, it's inevitable. Tens of thousands of people all traveling from all over the country is bad news for a start, before you even take into account the huge energy requirements and massive amounts of waste. However, some are making a good attempt at minimizing their impact - I attended Latitude festival last weekend, and I was impressed by the amount of thought that went into it.
It was easy to get there on public transport. I traveled to the nearest train station, and there were regular shuttle buses to the venue. This cut down on the number of people who drove to the festival significantly. If you absolutely had to drive, then you could use the festivals own lift-share scheme to make sure that your car was filled up. You could also cycle to the event, with secure bike racks being made available, although I doubt I could have made it with my tent....
GoinGreen is the London-based company behind the success of the quirky-looking, but increasingly popular, G-Wiz electric car. As we saw in our interview with GoinGreen Managing Director Keith Johnston here and here, the company has followed a radically different model compared to the average car dealership, using viral marketing techniques, and refusing to invest in either advertising or showrooms.
Looking at the news section of the company’s website (and the streets of London), it seems that this approach may be paying off. May and June were apparently record months for deliveries of the G-Wiz, with over 150 vehicles hitting the streets in these two months alone. While these number would be pitiful for any regular car dealership, GoinGreen’s low-overheads approach is allowing them to slowly but surely increase their sales of a radically different product. The cars popularity is being helped by celebrity endorsements - Jerry Hall has just become a proud owner, and TV presenter Jonathan Ross has just taken delivery of his second G-Wiz. For the first time since the car began being marketed in London, the company is claiming that there is currently no wait for one of these efficient, nippy town cars. It looks like the G-Wiz virus may be in danger of becoming an epidemic. ::GoinGreen:: via site visit::
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The Italian government has made an official request that businesses loosen up on the dress code during hot summer months. A statement from the ministry claims that, "Taking your tie off immediately lowers the body temperature by 2 to 3 degrees Celsius. Allowing a more sensible use of air conditioning that yields electricity savings and protects the environment.”
While this may not seem a significant message outside of Italy, by relating dress style to global warming the Italian government may have found a way to get the attention of a blasé public. One of the European Union’s most polluted members, Italy, in spite of various efforts to reduce emissions, is expected to exceed greenhouse gas emission targets. Perhaps by encouraging shabby dress in the workplace the government has tapped a nerve that will lead to other, more significant changes.
At least one tie-maker on the other hand is not impressed with the government’s anti-tie message. Reuters quotes from a letter to the newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore: "Italy confirms that it is a strange country," said Flavio Cima "I, tie maker, am responsible for global warming. We can now happily continue with our lifestyle, using cars, consuming fuel, heating and cooling our homes at leisure. On one condition: we should not wear a tie while we do so." Via ::Yahoo News
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This week we speak with artist Alyce Santoro about her creation of a special fabric made from recycled audio tape. A musical collage based on the fabric also provides our soundtrack. We also take a look at an artistic experiment that lets houseplants phone their owners and make demands. Research non-profit Environmental Working Group sheds some light on things we probably don’t know about our sunscreen, and TreeHugger Lloyd Alter comments on the greenwashing of Harry Potter number seven. Subscribe to TreeHugger Radio on iTunes or listen/right click to download. ::TreeHugger Radio(This week’s installment of TreeHugger Radio is written and produced by Jacob Gordon)
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US Organic food sales were still growing rapidly in 2006 (3% of total food & beverage sales), but have not yet reached the market share already achieved in Europe (7-10% of total).
"U.S. organic food sales totaled nearly $17 billion in 2006, up 22 percent over the previous year, according to preliminary findings from the Organic Trade Association's 2007 Manufacturers Survey. In the U.S., organic foods' share of total retail sales of food and beverages was up to about 3 percent, up from 1.9 percent in 2003 and approximately 2.5 percent in 2005."
"About 31 percent of overall organic sales in 2006 were through mainstream supermarkets/grocery stores, and 24 percent were through the leading natural food supermarket chains such as Whole Foods, Wild Oats, and Trader Joe's, according to the OCA."...
One more tale of romancing the coal. In addition to the one Lloyd posted, and the Abbott Laboratories story, recently written.
"Railroad operator CSX Corp. paid McGlotten & Jarvis $40,000 in the first half of 2007 to lobby the federal government, according to a disclosure form. The firm lobbied on legislation related to global warming and railroad security issues, according to the form posted online Tuesday by the Senate's public records office."
"In March, CSX said it was the first railroad company to join a federal program to set voluntary targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions. But the company, which is a major shipper of coal, is also among a number of railroad operators that is spending money to upgrade the nation's coal transportation network since coal accounts for about one-fifth - or $11 billion in 2006 - of the industry's revenue."
"In that regard, the railroad industry has joined mining and utility companies in touting the benefits of coal, which produces about half the nation's electricity. However, coal also produces more carbon dioxide - a contributor to global warming - than other fossil fuels."...
You could win a new Opel by driving with the least fuel over a 20km stretch in an Opel Corsa 1.3 CDTI, Astra 1.3 CDTI or a Vectra 1.9 CDTI. The contest is going on through 25 August at Opel dealers throughout Germany. The most fuel-efficient driver in each of the three models from each dealer will qualify for to win one of 50 eco-efficient Opel automobiles. Presumably Opel will have the cars set up with optimal tire pressure, topped up with light oil and carrying a tire repair kit rather than a spare, following their own fuel-saving tips (German). Drivers are advised to plan your trip to avoid stop-and-go or jammed traffic, look ahead to minimize braking, shift early to keep rpms low, and stay in gear rather than roll towards stoplights. Don't be afraid to turn the engine entirely off even for standing times as little as 3 mintues. And, of course, don't even think about switching the air conditioning on. ...
If the launch of Apple's iPhone a few weeks ago proved anything, it was that many of us still have an insatiable thirst for sleek, shiny and high tech devices and are more than willing to pay top billing for them. Recent consumer spending patterns in the home entertainment/theater areas have only reinforced this trend, with sales of plasma TVs, set-top boxes and DVDs continuing to soar.
Yet, according to tech writer Mark Fleishmann, this age of high tech excess may soon be winding down. Why? Peak oil, as he sees it, would be the main culprit. Having already discussed this topic at length in the past, you'll no doubt already be familiar with most of the points he lays out: the price of oil has risen to $71 in the wake of increased demand and reduced supplies, it follows a classic bell curve (easy to extract oil as the curve goes up, at the top reach peak oil, harder to extract oil as curve descends), etc. ...
Another alternative to harmful, chemically-dependent agriculture is cropping up in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh (UP) and remarkably, it involves the use of homoeopathic concoctions to keep plants healthy.
While homoeopathy has demonstrated benefit when used on human beings, it now appears that it has the same effect on plant life as well. Over local 400 farmers have switched from soil-degrading chemicals to homoeopathic solutions and according to a government-appointed research group, their potato harvests have shown a longer shelf-life, in addition to an apparent increase in yield....
TreeHugger Forums continue to rock 'n roll, as a few older threads (like this one about "ungreen confessions") keep pace with the steady stream of green ideas, thoughts and questions coming in, and if you like what you see, remember, we're looking for some new moderators. Here are some of the recent highlights...
1) New forum user rsktkr says, "I just joined this forum (great site BTW....very impressed) and nobody is talking about the greatest impact that we as individuals can have on the environment on a daily basis.....replace your lawn with an artificial lawn." The benefits? "No mowing (we use the equivalent of 10 cars emissions whenever we mow)no more chemicals that poison our water supply, no more wasting water!!! On average an artificial lawn application will save you 56,000 gallons per year!!!!" Hmm.
2) Another new user, Bebe580, says, "I have a question concerning recycling. A few days ago I was watching the morning news and the guy (can't remember his name) being interviewed who wrote Freakanomics says that it's actually a bad idea to recycle plastics and newspapers. A couples of his reasons were that the process involved costs too much and that it creates more pollution to recycle them. He also says that many cities don't recycle plastics because it costs so much." True or false?
3) Forum user Nowun IP has an interesting question: "How feasible is it to grow trees on some sort of floating island (don't ask me made of what, I haven't gotten that far yet) out in the middle of the ocean? Considering humans are constantly expanding their living space, yet we like our air...what all is in the way of building interconnected, small, solar powered, satellite guided, mobile islands of trees? $ would be a problem, floating the island, not harming ocean inhabitants, and what else would be problems?" More hot topics beneath the fold...
The new UK Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, was depicted as the 'Great Plane Robber' in a series of Ryanair adverts which have been pulled out of circulation. Brown increased air passenger duty, apparently to reduce the impact of aviation on the environment, although Ryanair obviously were implying that it was instead motivated by profit. They claimed that the government would make more than £1bn from the increase and that they didn't plan to invest any of the revenue into environmental projects.
The Advertising Standards Authority received a total of 48 complaints, most relating to Ryanair's claim that, "aviation accounts for just 2% of CO2 emissions". These claims were found to be unreliable and without basis, so the adverts were pulled. The authority also disagreed with Ryanair's claim that none of the tax revenue would be used in environmental projects. The government said that some of the money would go towards, "environmental measures and in increasing public transport". ...
We're completely downward dog with aGaIN NYC's hip, one-of-a-kind yoga bags. Made from repurposed fabric and a contrasting vintage men's tie, each $45 bag also features a small zippered pocket perfect for stashing loose change and your Metro card, so you can stretch, flex, and meditate unburdened. Slip in a standard-size yoga mat and secure with the drawstring closure.
More styles below the fold. :: aGaiN NYC
See also: :: Eco Mats by Eco Yoga, :: The Harmony Natural Rubber Yoga Mat, :: Organic Cotton Yoga Rugs, and :: Cleaning Your Yoga Mat, Naturally
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The Tesla is one hell of a sports car. We're obviously biased, but we honestly think that it's going to sell really well if enough people become aware of it. The video above is good news in this respect - it shows some shots taken for a commercial for Project Gotham Racing 4 from Microsoft, which will feature the Roadster.
You can see that it's competing pretty well compared to the other cars there, which represent an impressive collection of desirable sports cars. Getting featured in a computer game is going to do wonders for it's reputation. Hopefully little kids (future car-buying adults) are going to start looking at the Roadster as a 'real' sports car. ::Auto Blog Green...
Apartment therapy is running such a TreeHugger type survey that we thought that we would just steal it. They are writing from a "parlor-floor apartment in an old massive-walled brick building stays cool with the use of a ceiling fan"- staying cool in the City has its own issues and solutions. They note: "Lots of people use an air conditioner. Lots of others don't, out of environmental concerns, discomfort, or to keep the power bill down." They also point to a very useful guide from RealSimple: 23 ways to beat the heat.
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A team of researchers at Harvard University have created a life-size, robotic fly that they say has potential applications in spying as well as for detecting noxious chemicals. To build such a tiny robot, with a wingspan of only 3 cm and a weight of 60 milligrams, they developed a new fabrication process that consisted of using laser micromachining to slice thin sheets of carbon fiber and arranging them into functional parts.
They also incorporated electroactive polymers, which can change shape upon being exposed to voltage, into the parts to make them responsive to electrical signals. "Nature makes the world's best fliers," said Robert Wood, the project's leader and a professor at Harvard University's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences....
We do so many posts about China; its problems shouldn't be surprising since we outsourced our pollution and greenhouse gas emissions along with our manufacturing jobs, but who is running the show? Business Week asks:
Why is it so hard for this same government to crack down on exporters of dangerously tainted seafood, toothpaste, and medicine, despite years of warnings by local and foreign experts? The relentless headlines about unsafe products from China reveal a scary truth: Probe even a little into the Chinese economic miracle and glaring administrative failures abound. Product safety is just one aspect of Beijing's inability to enforce needed regulation in everything from manufacturing and the environment to copyrights and the capital markets.
In its latest issue, Popular Science champions genetic and geo-engineering as strategies to mitigate the effects of climate change on the planet and save the environment in a series of articles collectively referred to as "Duct Tape Methods to Save the Earth." The proposed schemes range from a plan to use huge blankets to wrap thawing glaciers in the Alps to using genetically modified tree plantations to replace thinning rainforests.
We've often been skeptical of the feasibility and long-term viability of geo-engineering in the past and certainly aren't big fans of genetic engineering. Having said that, we thought several of these schemes worth mentioning, were it not only for their sheer creativity, since similar ideas may very well be implemented in the near future as a series of quick fixes to our deteriorating environment (though the jury is still out on their potential for sucess)....
Interior designer and fashion stylist Scott Newkirk loved the 1973 eco-classic Handmade Houses: A Guide to the Woodbutcher’s Art and decided to build a 300 square foot off-grid cabin in the woods. It took two years to build; being a New York designer, it's not quite handmade and he "had a hard time finding builders who got his idea for a simple, rough-hewn look."-silly builders, they try to make it look finished.
It's small, it's built from salvaged and reclaimed materials and it's pretty basic. Nice.
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Core77 points us to a great essay by designer Khoi Vinh about the relationship between planned obsolescence -- the idea that objects are designed with a specific lifetime in mind -- and "designed deterioration" -- the very TreeHugger idea that we should be designing objects that actually improve with age. Held up as examples are digital hardware (like the iPhone) vs. a cast-iron pan.
I've noticed recently that the concept of what we might call designed deterioration is fairly anathema to digital hardware. The objects we purchase from purveyors of digital technology are conceived only up to the point of sale; the inevitable nicks, scratches, weathering, and fading they will encounter is not factored in at all. The result is that as they see more use, their ignorance may recede, but they wear it poorly. They don't age gracefully.
Photo credit: Peter Prehn
It'd be easier for Judy Steele to grow cannabis in her garden in Warwickshire, England, than it'd be to plant Carruther's Purple Podded peas, Auntie Madge's tomato, or Mr. Stiff's bunching onion. In fact, it's illegal to buy seeds of this old variety. But Steele, who is growing a row of those peas anyway, is hardly a criminal or some kind of botanical terrorist—the self-described "foster mother for orphaned pea varieties" is one of 300 seed guardians for Garden Organic, formerly known as the Henry Doubleday Research Association, based at Ryton, near Coventry.
Garden Organic's extensive seed library contains 800 traditional vegetable varieties once grown in Britain but are now outlawed by European legislation. How did society reach the point that growing food became a criminal move? Or an act of subversion?...
It's getting close to Solar Decathlon time, when TreeHugger is filled with green architectural wonders from the twenty entries in this competition sponsored by the U.S Department of Energy to "design, build, and operate the most attractive and energy-efficient solar-powered home."
First up is the University of Illinois, which is "meant to be a display to people that being comfortable and conserving energy aren’t two different things, that we can build a house that requires only 10 percent of the energy a typical house today requires, build it with today’s technologies and show that it saves money.”...
With the promise of reduced costs and increased efficiency, the virtualization rage continues in the techno-sphere. The basic premise of virtualization is to make one server do the work of many; this increases utilization, and hence requires less servers. Fewer servers mean less power, which in turn means less CO2, thus saving the planet. Simple.
But now there's a counterpoint; "yes, you have fewer servers in a virtualized environment, but each one of those servers is more heavily utilized, and because they are doing more work their power consumption goes up. The net gain is zero." Can that be? When we interviewed Foedus, they claimed one could get up to a 20 to 1 reduction in hardware using virtualization; it's hard to believe that doesn't more than make up for the extra power. Quocirca did their own analysis and came to the same conclusion. On the other hand, when we interviewed John Engates of Rackspace, he agreed that the power to run the heavier-laden box beats the costs of buying it - the juice beats the iron.
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One of the forerunners of eco-fashion in the States, Indigenous Designs, has been highlighted in the Wall Street Journal this week, not for their environmental sense, but for their business sense. With over ten years of success behind them Indigenous Designs are continuing to grow and expand into new markets, proving that ethical fashion and commercial success are not mutually exclusive. This September their clothes will be stocked in Dillards department stores and according to co-founder Scott Leonard this year the company's revenue is expected to double to more than $4 million from $2 million last year. He goes on to say that the number of individual stores stocking Indigenous Designs clothing has jumped 75% in the past 18 months. Is this success due purely to the ethical nature of the brand?...
Renovation is the greenest way to build, but so often our older buildings are left to rot and collapse. Toronto's 1850 era Walnut Hall was designated as historic ten years ago, but was left empty and exposed until bricks started falling off it and the City demolished it. The owner quoted Captain Renaud from Casablanca: "We're shocked, we're quite disturbed by the whole thing." Chris Hume notes in The Star that "heritage preservation is a crucial aspect of metropolitan civilization" but in Toronto and most of North America, "nothing should be allowed to interfere with the rights of property owners, even when they are yahoos who would wreck a unique and valuable site to make a buck."
Catherine Nasmith of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario is disgusted.
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With great concern for the birds, TreeHugger has posted a series of articles on the problems of wind turbines and bird flyways. We sent a post to one of our favorite green groups - The Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) - and were surprised to learn that Israeli ornithologists are involved in monitoring wind turbines and bird migration. One of their conclusions is that perhaps Israel should not operate wind farms at all.
Writes Michelle Levine from the SPNI:
Dan Alon, head of the Israel Ornithological Center (the IOC is also under the umbrella of SPNI), is currently doing research on wind turbines and birds. I'm pasting an article below which I wrote with IOC ornithologist Zev Labinger on this subject regarding our research on wind turbines and migration here in Israel.
You can read Michelle’s article after the jump. ...
Designer Chris Kirby wants us all to compost. Believing that "if we are to value food waste, then we should treat it with importance," he created the Compost Vase, an artful, dare we say, sexy (oh, we dare!) accoutrement for composting. Says Kirby, "Made from porcelain, I wanted the compost vase to be a treasured object dedicated to the reclaimation of food wastes. The compost vase introduces ritual into food waste collection. During meal preparation, it lays flat to receive trimmings from the cutting board. At mealtime, it sits on its side as a reinterpretation of the Victorian 'bone dish'. Upright, it is a vase for display." Once you get the basics of compost down, this could be an easy way to make it a bit more fun. The design was one of "10 highly commended entries" in designboom's "ceramics for breakfast" design contest; learn more about Chris at his website and check out more pics beneath the fold. ::Chris Kirby Design's Compost Vase via ::designboom...
Image: Photograph: Wuhan/AP
"Wuhan, Hebei province: A man collects dead fish in Donghu lake, where officials say an estimated 30,000kg of fish have been killed by a combination of pollution and hot weather".
::The Guardian
More after the jump......
For many of us, nothing says summer like a dinner from the grill. The taste of marinated flank steak, barbecued chicken and fresh veggies is so yummy when it comes off the Weber, not to mention the cleanup is a quick one so we can enjoy the warm nights. But have you thought about the impact on our environment that may come from grilling? Last year, Lloyd gave you some tips on how to grill greener and we’re bringing you even more with the “P’s and Q’s of BBQ” from the Sierra Club. While your backyard barbie alone isn’t going ruin the environment, the Sierra Club notes that 60 million of us fire up the grill over holidays like Memorial Day, July 4th and Labor Day. They also say that “Three out of four U.S. households own at least one barbecue grill. Among grill owners, 48 percent fire up with charcoal, 61 percent with propane, and 7 percent with electricity.” We understand the love for a charcoal grill so if that’s the way you choose to go, check out companies like Wicked Good Charcoal that produce charcoal that is 100% natural. ::”P’s and Q’s of BBQ” from the Sierra Club Also see: “Get Your Grill On” from the Sierra Club...
TreeHugger has teamed up with Instructables and Popular Science to bring you the Go Green! contest. We want to know how you're reducing your environmental footprint, and hopefully saving some cash in the process. Are you modding your gear, simplifying your life, or building something awesome? Tell us what you're doing to go green, and teach us how -- share what you know! Whether you're making your own microwavable mitten warmers, building a 1000 Watt wind turbine, stitching up a cloth grocery bag or hammering together some recycled modular shelving, this is all about DIY ingenuity and making the most of what we've got. So, reduce, reuse, repurpose, recycle, and rebuild, then show us what you are doing to make your life a little bit greener! Need more ideas? Hit up our guides for How to Go Green or check out PopSci's green coverage.
The deadline for entries is August 19, 2007 (get all the details here) and the judging panel will include head TreeHuggers Graham Hill and Ken Rother and Voltaic Systems CEO Shayne McQuade (who is also a member of TreeHugger's Board of Advisors). The grand prize winner will receive a Breezer Liberty hybrid commuter bicycle with pedal-powered lights, a brief write-up in a future issue of Popular Science, and a 1-year subscription to Popular Science magazine. Good luck! All the details are at ::Instructables...
The UK shed scene is so creative; so many designers are offering holiday homes, caravans and sheds that one could devote an entire website to them. (hey, someone did!) Philip Simpson "wanted something that would enhance the user's appreciation of the outdoors, from both inside and out." and sketched up the Orb (on backs of envelopes and restaurant napkins, of course.) Architect David Miller and interior design consultancy Real Studios polished it off.
"Its unique oval shape and generous glazing provide a luxurious sense of space and light, as well as intrinsic strength, flexibility, sustainability and superb insulation efficiency."
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The problem of toxic electronic waste is no longer a dirty little secret. Thanks to relentless efforts of consumer advocacy groups, photojournalists -- and, we like to think, little old blogs like us -- the computer industry is starting to take notice. Obvious first steps like the elimination of lead, and reduction of fire retardants, and institution of recycling programs are being rolled out all across the industry. But the holy grail of recycling, product take-back, still hadn't been tackled, until now. Newcomer Zonbu recently introduced its Zonbox home networking PC, and one of the coolest features is one you don't get to use until it breaks....
While the tragedy of the exploding New York City steam pipe is still on the news, this would be a good time to point out an example of the environmental benefits of below-ground urban steam use. Back in May it was reported that in the City of Duluth Minnesota, [USA] "crews were pumping insulation into the conduits that cradle Duluth's network of steam pipes." The Duluth cooperative steam plant delivers steam via underground pipes to more than 225 buildings in Canal Park and downtown Duluth, and demand for its steam heat is growing. For the future:- "Following a $1 million investment in equipment, the facility probably could generate about 1 megawatt of power with the steam it currently produces. "
"It's part of a $4.2 million initiative to improve the efficiency of the city's steam works. The project will involve updating coal pulverizers, installing new boiler controls, wrapping valves and expansion joints with insulation blankets, repairing the team plant's smokestack and replacing its coal conveyance system. When all the work is done, analysts predict the city steam plant will be able to cut its diet of coal by 17 percent, said Jerry Pelofske, manager of the Duluth Steam Cooperative Association. Pelofske believes there's plenty of life left in the plant, which will mark its 75th birthday this year."...
UK solar company Solarcentury is one of those companies that just keeps on cropping up on TreeHugger. Most recently we’ve covered their work to get part-funded solar panels to schools, and their collaboration with Barclaycard to even provide them free for a select few learning establishments. We’ve also written about their expansion to Spain, and once upon a time we even interviewed Jeremy Leggett, the company’s CEO, who also happens to be a leading peak oil expert and former oil man. Now we see from Solarcentury’s website that, for a limited period of time, they are offering lucky customers the chance to get 50% more capacity on solar installations free of charge:
“For a limited time only, leading solar solutions provider Solarcentury is offering its customers the opportunity to generate 50% more energy, for free. By purchasing a 36 solar photovoltaic roof tile system for the price of a 24-tile system, customers can save £3,514 and increase their electricity generation. The offer is only available until 31st September so those who are interested need to act quickly. Available through selected builders’ merchants and direct to housebuilders from Solarcentury, each system comes with everything needed to start generating clean electricity straight away; 36 C21e solar roof tiles and fixings, a grid connected inverter and DC isolators, a kilowatt hour generation meter, a wireless personal display and DC cabling.”
Providing healthy lunches for school children has been an on-going debate and dilemma in Britain. Jamie Oliver waded into the fray and managed to get the government to up its standards, whilst being pilloried by some mothers who sold chocolate bars to the deprived students through the fences. Students in one third of all secondary schools have rejected healthy school lunches, preferring french fries. But 80% of all elementary schools report that the adoption of school lunches has improved. Of course the little ones don't have any choice, but with food being provided by the likes of the Duke of Cambridge pub, they can consider themselves lucky.
The pub, the first organic gastro-pub in the UK, has teamed up with one local school to create a version of its menu to suit pupils and has also provided the links to the organic food suppliers. The chefs from the pub have taught school cooks how to make stock and mustard vinaigrette as well as fish filleting. Parents are invited to tastings and trial runs are being made with the children before the new school year. As the principal said "We're not trying to be posh, this is not just for middle-class people. Good food is good food". And the menu: butternut squash and pea risotto with pan-friend lentil burgers, rhubarb crumble with cream, or salmon pie with mashed potato topping and steamed savoy cabbage. Where do we sign up? :: The Guardian...
A need for simple, modern, affordable furniture was the ultimate goal for Cain Collection (chair pictured here) from the designers at STAACH; but they've gone far beyond that, including some useful extra features like being stackable and the ability to be upholstered.
Chair is Simple and Modern, but Sustainable Too!
Even better, the line is the first production piece to truly encompass their concept of "sustainability" in manufacturing and design; the wood comes from sustainable sources in New York and Pennsylvania, and all the fabrication is done in house with only two tools. The chairs are finished with non-toxic wood glue and water-based, low- to no-VOC lacquers, and can be flat packed (requiring a bit of assembly) for shipping. This modern, stackable, sustainable chair by STAACH is available at Branch....
Well, that may be a somewhat humorous take on a huge issue, but the good news is that a majority of American voters in six congressional districts now see global warming as the biggest environmental problem according to a new poll by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Seventy-three percent of the voters polled favored immediate measures to reduce carbon emissions with just 19% favoring the idea of waiting for new technologies to solve the crisis. And sixty-three percent of voters polled support the idea of placing mandatory limits on emissions from power plants through a cap-and-trade system that allows trading in carbon pollution permits to help make that happen. By a measure of 50 to 25 percent, voters polled said that pollution permits should be sold to U.S. companies with the revenues dedicated to funding new energy saving technologies, and protecting consumers and displaced workers. Clearly, the greater percentage of those polled do not want to see the permits given to U.S. companies for free…...
See if these folks were flaunting sexy butts, then you wouldn't want to get 'em off the beach. Surfers Against Sewage (SAS), Marine Conservation Society and British Naturist campaigners took to a Brighton beach and took a crack at getting out the word. You say but you've told us this before. But it's too difficult to get rid of my cigarette butt when I'm at the beach. Butt, butt, butt...
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The Rainforest Alliance education program encourages schools to weave environmental topics into into their curricula. Instead of reading Curious George (a property of Universal Studios) the kids in this video become howler monkies bellowing with delight, breathing life into the grown-up TreeHugger's concern for "biodiversity." While teachers celebrate the difference between rainforest species, students make that same comparison between their own lives and those of children in other countries such as Guatemala or Ecuador. Students then complete an essay about their experiences, thereby fulfilling district initiatives in writing -- all while imagining far off foresty worlds as immediate, while empathizing with peers who live lives beyond computer screens. The creativity is so manifest that one grade-schooler transforms the potentially dry statistic "in the rainforest it can rain 400 inches in a year" into a bubbly tune that he performs for the camera. Seeing the vibrant colors of the kids' classroom in the video may transport some adults back in time, in their minds and in their feelings, to a more receptive place where what the eyes grasped became fertilizer for the imagination. For those smaller humans still in possession of that faculty, what could be more nourishing than the exciting vibrance of the rainforest? Not just for its colors, but for the very pulse of its life, an energy with which they still remain close. Where there may be room enough in a child's imagination for both Transformers and Jaguars, we at TreeHugger are of the firm opinion that if an opportunity cost is at hand, Transformers get the boot.
via: Susty.tv...
Looking down from the formal heights of The Economist offices, a green carpet invites you to come out and take a break. A lush grass installation of 40 square meters fills this little bit of London with a relaxed atmosphere and invites you to gather on its comfortable surface. 'Convocation’ calls individuals to come together without restriction. The installation, which opened yesterday, is commissioned by the Economist Group and designed by Sparks, an interdisciplinary collaboration of artists and designers based in London.
The Economist symbolises the big picture, as a commentator on the major forces that inform and direct the course of whole communities and societies. The grass symbolises the small picture, where a chance interaction between two people can be just as transformative.
So ok, the grass is artificial, not natural… but think about all the water and pesticides they save?! It is, like Marcus Willcock explains, about people connecting more with their environments and each other: an injection of green in the heart of one of London's grey-suit and grey-stone commercial contexts. In case Sparks wanted to repeat the act with real grass, here's the organic way to the perfect lawn. You can convoke until September 14th at The Economist Plaza, 10am to 6pm, 25 St. James’s Street in London. ::Sparks Thanks Marcus for the tip.
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It sounds like three Welsh fishing buddies have developed the next best thing to a perpetual motion machine. The concept is thus: Fitted to car instead of an exhaust their Greenbox device traps carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide. The box needs to be replaced about every full tank of fuel. “Through a chemical reaction, the captured gases from the box would be fed to algae, which would then be crushed to produce a bio-oil. This extract can be converted to produce a biodiesel almost identical to normal diesel.” Voila! - driving your car produces fuel. After a couple of years of testing and umpteen hundreds of thousands of dollars invested in research it would appear that there is more to this than the usual magic solution that crosses our desks. Of course the devil is usually in the detail. ...
Hi,
I'm considering purchasing a 2007 Mercedes Bluetec e320 Diesel. My question is "Is this car really green?"
My 04 Prius has 60k miles and is worse for wear and I'm too tall to comfortably drive it any longer. I can't help but think the Bluetec is a step in reverse for me personally and that I really want to move forward with a Plug-in Hybrid or full EV, but no options exist. I'm tired of driving a constrictive tiny car built for the 95% of Japanese people, I'm not willing to accept a hybrid SUV, the notion is ridiculous. I want 50mpg+! and I want to stop BURNING fuel. What's my next car?
Thanks!
Lex
Hey Lex,
Is the Mercedes Bluetec e320 Diesel green? Well, one thing's for certain...it doesn't feel as green as a Prius. Unfortunately, it's hard to get both the green feeling and the headroom. Green cars aren't small because they're built for Japanese people, they're small because to be efficient, cars need to be light, and present a low profile to the 70 mph winds that constantly buffet highway cars. ...
Ed. note: This is the second post (read the first one about biodiesel) in the Green Basics series of posts that TreeHugger is writing to provide basic information about important ideas, materials and technologies for new greenies (or those who just need a quick refresher). Read on, about compost and stay tuned!What is compost?Compost is the "aerobically derived remnants of organic materials" (thank you Wikipedia), meaning its what you get when you combine the leftovers of plant and animal-based stuff, add a little air, water and nitrogen. The decomposition is performed primarily by aerobes (organisms with oxygen-based metabolism), although larger creatures such as ants, nematodes, and worms (this process is also known as vermiculture) can also contribute. This decomposition occurs naturally except for in extreme anaerobic conditions, like in landfills, very arid deserts or cold weather such as boreal winters or polar regions, which prevent the microbes and other decomposers from thriving. Decomposition happens even in the absence of some of these ingredients, but not as quickly or as pleasantly. Compost is used most often at the consumer level in gardening and agriculture as a fertilizer-type soil additive, and can also often replace commercial fertilizers....
Globally, companies sold more than $32 billion in nanotechnology-enabled products last year. Yep, nanotech is here to stay, but what the heck is it? 42% of us don't know what it is, but it makes fabric water resistant (which not everyone likes) and can help glass clean itself. Here are some of our favorite implementations.
1) First of all, nanotech "matters" because of the absolutely endless problem-solving possibilities it offers the world, from the nano scale on up. Carbon tubes manufactured to this size -- nanotubes -- are stronger than steel wire, more conducive than copper wire and can support their weight a million times over. The possible applications are vast.
2) Buckypaper, named for Buckminsterfullerene and our old friend Buckminster Fuller and made from the carbon nanotubes mentioned above, is 10 times lighter and 250 times stronger than steel, but is also highly conductive of heat and electricity. If the researchers are successful in making Buckypaper hold a charge it would be more energy-efficient, lighter, and would allow for a more uniform level of brightness than current CRT and LCD technology.
3) Similarly, NanoSafe battery cells show some promise in replacing current lithium-ion technology; even after 15,000 cycles, the cells still retained over 85% of their original charge capacity. Phoenix Motorcars will feature them in their upcoming line of electric pickup trucks. The remaining two picks are after the jump...
If climate change is primarily the result of burning fossil fuels isn't offsetting with trees simply a distraction? Shouldn't we focus on renewable energy projects that can replace the use of fossil fuel?
It's true that burning fossil fuels accounts for the largest proportion of carbon emissions. Nevertheless, the loss of trees plays a significant role. The conversion of forests has contributed around 30% of the total carbon build up in the atmosphere since 1850. And it continues – deforestation still accounts for over 20% of emissions a year. ...
Here's a video from the recent Postopolis! event, that saw New York City-based designers, architects and bloggers come together to forge a greener future over a chat. Included on the panel are TreeHugger's fearless leader Graham Hill as well as Metropolis magazine Editor Susan Szenasy, Jill from Inhabitat and Allan Chochinov at Core77, and the topics include sustainability, design, green building and urbanism and more. If you find this clip as interesting as we do, there's more that digs further into issues of sustainable consumption and role of new media, among other topics. Thanks to Jill at Inhabitat for helping coordinate everything! ::Postopolis! via ::Inhabitat...
Solar-powered single-family homes are so yesterday. Sure, we appreciate the many owners who have become their own utility company (many times even putting their excess solar energy in the grid). However, when it comes to the other factors of smart housing, single-family homes can't hold a candle to multi-family units. Not only does an apartment or condo complex use much less land (and therefore much less infrastructure) than single-family homes on a per unit basis, it creates the density needed to support communities where walkability and public transportation are top notch. That's why we love when multi-family units start powering up with the technologies gaining traction in single-unit residences.
This all brings us to the SOLARA, the recently opened apartment complex in Poway, California that claims to be the first fully solar-powered apartment complex in the state. The SOLARA includes 56 apartment units and office space within walking distance of services, shopping and public transportation. Southern California + green building + apartment name in all capital letters - you might think this is more green housing for the wealthy. You would be wrong....
"The U.S. Department of Energy's Building America program has released a new best practices handbook for builders, High-Performance Home Technologies: Solar Thermal & Photo-voltaic Systems. The guidebook explains current photo-voltaic and solar thermal building practices and provides useful tips for builders and home buyers. The book also enhances the information contained in the previous Best Practices volumes that give climate-specific tips for energy-efficient building in five climate zones."
The guide is very well laid out and attractively presented: unusal for a tech handbook. Donwload the entire thing here. Via::Renewable Energy Access....
This week, TreeHugger is giving away 10 pairs of tickets to the LA screening of the upcoming movie Arctic Tale. Congrats to everyone who has already scored tickets, however we still have a few tickets left to give away. Here's what you have to do: scavenge TreeHugger and arctictale.com for the answers to the questions at the bottom of this post. Then, simply send your answers to: contest [at] treehugger [dot] com as soon as you find all the answers. We only have a few tickets left, and the first readers to email us the answers will come away with a pair of tickets, so hurry up and answer these questions! ...
Last week’s issue (July 5-11) of Time Out New York (TONY) was the magazine’s “Green Issue” and their cover really made you want to turn the page to see what it was all about. Jam packed with information about how New Yorkers can lead a more eco-friendly lifestyle, it also includes features about shopping, green building and sites to see, such as the Queens Botanical Garden where the cover photo was taken by controversial photographer Spencer Tunik. Our favorites included the “B.S. Factor” where TONY scrutinizes the green life and events (Live Earth included) to find the truth behind the green fad, as well as “What Shade Are You?” The latter discusses different “shades of green” and how a resident of NYC can help the environment, even if they do nothing at all or at least the bare minimum. With so many different boutiques to choose from in NYC we also appreciated their insight into where we can find the latest eco-chic. Is running for exercise your thing? You might want to check out TONY’s review on air pollution – it’ll make you think twice about this evening’s trek. We couldn’t take our eyes off this issue…and it might not even be making its way to the recycling bin. All articles are available online by searching “The Green Issue.” ::Time Out New York...
According to a new poll released by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a majority of voters in six moderate to conservative congressional districts now believe global warming to be the top environmental problem and favor immediate actions to reduce carbon emissions. Air pollution and clean air were mentioned by 40% of respondents while clean water was only cited as a major concern by 25%.
Telephone surveys were conducted among voters who live in the congressional districts of six members of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee (which will be considering new global warming emissions legislation in the fall). In each case, 402 individuals were interviewed for a total of 2,416. The aggregate findings showed that an unprecedented 7 out of 10 voters agreed that global warming was a serious problem and, that given a choice, 73% would like to start cutting down on emissions now. Only 19% of voters expressed a preference for waiting until cleaner technologies were available....
At first glance, the Piccolo Grande by nobodyandco may just look like classic outdoor furniture, but grab one end and pull, and watch what happens: by simply sliding the structure, the staves separate and double in length, transforming a table for two into a table for four, and intimate seating for a date into a dinner party. We aren't crazy about the use of teak as the wood of choice, but we're suckers for sleek multi-functional, space-saving furniture like this. The designer, whose groovy bookcase/chair combo was also featured on TreeHugger, notes that it will be available starting in September 2007. ::nobodyandco via ::Crib Candy
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Isolating a single factor as the main cause of any phenomenon is usually a tricky disposition for scientists. Particularly in climate science, where there still resides much uncertainty over the relative contributions of individual weather characteristics to the climate patterns we've witnessed over the last few years, attempting to draw a direct line between a single event and a specific factor is almost always inadvisable. Yet that is exactly what four NOAA scientists have done in a paper in which they claim that greenhouse gases are behind over half of last year's record-breaking heat wave in the U.S.
While NOAA had originally announced in a press release that El Niño and increasing GHG levels were both to blame for 2006's unprecedented warmth, it hadn't specifically designated one as having a greater effect over the other. A group of scientists from NOAA's Earth System Research Laboratory in Boulder, Colorado, decided to find out which, if any, had a larger impact. After scrutinizing the effect of 10 El Niño warmings of the tropical Pacific on U.S. temperatures, they found that these events had actually had a slight cooling effect on northern states. In separate trials using two distinct climate models to simulate the same El Niño effect, they confirmed this cooling trend. ...
We all know that we're supposed to talk to our plants (and maybe give them an occasional hug) to make them healthier, but now the plants are talking back. A company called Botanicalls have merged plant care with telecommunications, devising and constructing a way to bring container gardening to the 21st century: using their system, your plants will call you on the phone when they need to be watered, when they haven't gotten enough, and to thank you when they're no longer thirsty.
With a duo of goals -- keeping the plants alive by translating the communication protocols of the plants (leaf habit, color of foliage, droop, etc) to more common human communication protocols (email, voice phone calls, digital visualizations, etc) and making a connection between people and plants by exploring and visualizing people's emotional connection to plants and the ways plants help humans -- the project empowers communication between plants and people. Hey, the more plants around, the better, right? See the plants in action, making some calls at a video over at Reuters and see what's in store for Phase 2 after the jump....
AIDG Blog: Carnival of the Green # 86 by Catherine Laine
"Live Earth is maybe the concert equivalent of Marmite for environmentalists: either you loved it or you hated it. Jim Jay of the Daily Maybe weighs in with his thoughts. Despite the title of his post, “Open Sewer Earth”, which would suggest that Jim is in the “hated it” camp, he gives fair analysis of how the naysayers have a few things all wrong."
Ecorazzi: Anya Bags Sell Out in 29 Minutes at Columbus Circle by Melissa Rosenberg. "I arrived at Whole Foods on Columbus Circle this morning in the pouring rain to take photos of Anya Hindmarch’s “I’m Not a Plastic Bag” buyers. I was lucky enough have pre-ordered my bag at the Theory Store’s “It’s Easy Being Green” event in early June. The bags went on sale at 8am. I arrived at about 8:27 and snapped my first photo at 8:29 just as a Whole Foods rep came outside to tell the crowd, “The last bag has just been sold."...
In a city like New York where the brunt of emissions derives from buildings, anything that helps reduce energy consumption, especially during the summer when air conditioning is at its peak usage, can go a long way toward easing some pressure off its overworked power grids. Several companies seem to have found an ideal solution to the city's grid problems and their own AC-related energy woes: using an innovative ice-cooling system that relies on blocks of ice to pump cold air through buildings.
The Off-Peak Cooling (OPC) system, devised by CALMAC, a company that specializes in the manufacturing of thermal energy storage and ice rink equipment, not only lowers energy use but it also cuts down on pollution by drastically reducing the emissions typically generated by normal AC systems. "It is worth it to do in New York City. If you take the time to look, you can find innovative ways to be energy efficient, be environmental and sustainable," said William Beck, the head of critical engineering systems for Credit Suisse, which has incorporated this system into many of its offices. ...
Hey, it's been awhile since we talked Wal-Mart right? They report having achieved a 15% improvement in transportation efficiency and are headed to 25% and beyond. Moreover, their progress is going to drive the competition and independent shippers to take similar steps. For background, check out an earlier post we did on one of the long-term truck design changes that will help Wal-Mart meet a stretch goal beyond 25%.
Back to the present: Wal-Mart says it is already well under way to meet its transportation efficiency goals. Its "fleet of about 7,200 semi-tractor trailer trucks is already about 15% more fuel efficient and the company knows what changes it needs to make to meet a target of 25% by late next year. The annual savings in carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, would be equal to taking 67,744 cars off the road."
"The 15% gain has come mainly from three changes: A fuel additive mix, more fuel-efficient tires and small diesel generators called Alternate Power Units added to tractors to provide power for things like heating and air conditioning in the cab, allowing the big truck engine to be turned off rather than idling when the truck is parked."...
Farting has come up on TreeHugger before, but mainly in relation to cows. We’ve seen garlic used to fight cow farts, and we’ve seen scientists using fumaric acid, and plant derived tannins to do the same. All because of the huge environmental impact of methane emissions from cows. Human flatulence, however, has escaped our notice (at least editorially!) until now. This will all change if Fart Neutral have their way. Working from the self-declared, and hard to disprove, premise that “farts are funny”, fart neutral are offering various carbon offset products to neutralise one person's methane emissions in a year. While the concept may seem a little, well, immature, it does seem that this organization’s intentions are noble:
“Fart Neutral’s goal is to bring attention to global warming in a unique and humorous way. We offer a line of gift cards, t-shirts and other items, each of which comes with a certificate for a 1000 lbs. reduction in greenhouse gases. The 1000 lbs. greenhouse gases reduction not only neutralizes a person’s farts for one year, but it also offsets greenhouse gases created in the actual production of the apparel and gift cards. A purchase from Fart Neutral is truly green from top to bottom.”
[This is the second in a series of five guest posts looking at the importance of brand strategy and effective marketing for green and ethical businesses. For post one, click here.]
The key to marketing sustainability is making it relevant to values consumers already hold. Instead of trying to convince people they need to care about "sustainability" — it's more productive to talk to them about honesty, responsibility, fairness and innovation - all the things sustainability, at its core, is about.
A quite impressive 1.4 million people read Treehugger in the course of a month -- yet that's not enough to sustain a movement. For sustainability to be sustainable, it has to instigate a permanent structural change in how MOST PEOPLE live their lives. To reach a majority of people, we need to make our values relevant to a majority of people. And the majority of First World earthlings don't wake up planning to save the planet. Instead, they're hungry for breakfast, concerned about their family, curious about the newest episode of CSI, and wondering how they're going to get through their day. It's important to understand what captures the imaginations and anxieties of the folks outside our 1.4 million circle of tree huggers. Here are some numbers:
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Everyone is gaga over HP7 being "the greenest book of all time" and showing the silly graphic showing the "impact reduction" of its publishing worldwide. We knew that Raincoast Books in Canada has published its version in ancient forest free 100% recycled paper, but they did that for HP6 and all of their books, nothing new there. We know also that the author asked that all of her publishers use 100% recycled content.
Yet the biggest publisher of them all, Scholastic, serving the American market, refused. TreeHugger emeritus Hank Green notes that "only 65% of the pulp used in HP7 (American edition) is certified ancient-forest friendly." So 130,000 trees have been saved but how many have been chopped because of Scholastic's intransigence?
That 35% of a doorstop the size and print run of the American Harry Potter probably represents more trees lost than any other book published in the States this year. Hank says "Scholastic is being fairly backward and profit-driven here. How much cash do they really need to haul here. Honestly, they could pass the cost onto the consumer and absolutely no one would mind."
It is surprising that smart American green websites would fall for this international averaging out of Scholastic's boreal clearcut. ::Eco-Geek
UPDATE: A commenter accuses me of being negative again: "Can't we just be happy with the efforts they did make, not the efforts they didn't?" No, not when they are calling it "the greenest book of all time" which it clearly is not. We applaud them for their efforts, not their public relations.
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A perfect companion to the lite2go lamp in your zero waste home, the television packaging designed by Tom Ballhatchet becomes the television stand. Putting wheels on it for easy transport home, Ballhatchet designed the areas that the screen occupied inside the package to be used as shelves for the TV stand (the wheels come off and go underneath), and the result is the first large appliance packaging we've seen that won't end up in the recycle bin or landfill when you get it unpacked. Yeah, TVs will soon hog the most energy of any single appliance in your home, so we generally aren't crazy about boob tubes, but you can't deny the intelligence and design savvy of this innovative package, and you won't have to worry about what to do when you upgrade. Check out step-by-step pics of the unpacking and setup process after the jump. ::Tom Ballhatchet via ::Hugg and ::Gizmodo...
Don't let the simplistic-looking design or ironic name throw you; Hurdle Lighting offers more than meets the eye, and is actually designed to remove barriers, rather than put them up. Named for its shape when "lying down," the task lighting system offers two ways to illuminate your desk; put it upright, and it resembles a traditional task light (pictured above), set it down, and it looks more like its namesake (pictured after the fold). The really cool part: a sensor in the lamp tells it where to shine the light, which sounds crazy but appears to work; there's a picture that better explains it after the jump. The smart, slender design keeps it out of your way on the desk, and we like the quick-changing functionality of the simple form. Sadly, it's but a prototype at the moment, having just been named a finalist for the Lightouch Design 07 Competition; we'll be in line when it hits the market. The pics after the jump offer insight into its multi-functionality. ::Lightouch via ::SciFi Tech...
If John Ryan didn't read Made to Break, he sure channelled it with his Abeio (latin for "to disappear") line of garden furniture and accessories, created as his thesis at OCAD. He notes that many people live in urban locatrions with limited storage space and treat outdoor furniture as consumables, throwing them away at the end of a season. He asks "If outdoor furnishings are used as consumables, then why aren't they designed as consumables?" He designed some examples:
The aveioLight is "Made entirely of beeswax — a non-toxic, renewable, and biodegradable ignition source — abeioLights are designed to be planted in the ground and used for outdoor lighting. The cup shaped top of the candle provides cover against drafts, while the tapered base gives stability and support. Since abeioLights are made from beeswax, any drippings that may end up on the ground will biodegrade without harm to garden life."
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If you want to do a greener and more ethical food shop and are baffled by the overwhelming choices, here are 5 questions, and answers, to ponder while stalking the aisles of the supermarket. Number 1: Where can I find products without excessive packaging? Buy loose fruits and vegetables, or look for packaging that is recyclable or compostable. Ask the supermarket to take back the packaging that you don't need, and take a bag with you. Number 2: What fish and seafood is from sustainable sources? General guidelines: don't buy deep-water species as they tend to be over-fished, don't eat fish during their breeding season and look for seasonal purchasing guides. Download the Pocket Good Fish Guide and carry it in your bag.
Number 3: Do you stock a Fairtrade version of this? Ask for Fairtrade products and supermarkets will start to respond by stocking them. Number 4: Where can I find local produce? Look at the packaging carefully, sometimes the same vegetables from two different countries will be sitting side by side. Again, pester your supermarket to increase the local and seasonal food that it carries. Number 5: Do you know where the palm oil in your products comes from ? Palm oil plantations in Indonesia and Malaysia are having a devastating effect on the rainforest. Palm oil is often not on ingredient lists. Steer clear of processed food.
And lastly, an important question when it comes to finances: How to buy organic on a tight budget? Some fruits and vegetables have more pesticide residues than others. If you can’t afford to switch to all organic, consider buying organic: flour, potatoes, bread, apples, pears, grapes, strawberries, green beans, tomatoes and cucumbers. :: thelondonpaper ...
So do you pack in the old Charger for a Prius? Pablo says so- "Continuing to drive an older car with poor fuel economy is less environmentally friendly than getting a new car that gets drastically better fuel economy." However our commenters dissented: "A 1984 Honda Civic gets better mileage than a new one because it is smaller, lighter, and designed in an era when high mileage was king. Sure, it isn't as safe or as fast, but in many ways it is as efficient." UPDATE: Adria Vasil of Ecoholic (interviewed here) agrees with Pablo, in Now Magazine, copied below fold.
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Great Bow Yard is "a unique development of 12 stunningly designed houses and apartments,...These homes have been built using sustainably sourced materials, avoiding toxic chemicals commonly found in new houses. They are insulated far above normal standards for UK construction and incorporate renewable energy sources and energy-saving devices. "
and they look terrific, inside and out. Watch the video:
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Solar production capacity is expanding at the BP Solar-owned Frederick MD, USA plant. Ground breaking has taken place on a "$97 million expansion project that will further bolster the facility's output of solar energy products...Already the largest fully integrated solar plant in North America, the plan is to nearly double the current casting and sizing capacity to approximately 150 MW and will create approximately 70 new jobs."
"Exactly nine months ago, the company announced it would invest $70 million in the project. That figure has now been increased to $97 million, which will allow for space to further enlarge its manufacturing capacity to 400+ MW in its casting, sizing, and wafering processes. Construction is slated for completion by the end of 2009."...
If you're wearing a sweater from Flocks, a new knitwear brand from the Netherlands, you'll be able to trace the wool back to the very animal that provided it. Because one sheep provides enough wool for exactly one sweater, the company is able to credit each animal for the fiber used via a tag that lists the animal's ID number, breed, and weight, as well as its year and place of birth. You even get a photo of your sheep. How's that for an ultrapersonal touch? Prices start at EUR 475.
While non-dyed wool is currently being used in all its natural glory, Flock plans on extending its provenance labels to materials dyed with plant-based extracts, so you'll be able to meditate on the type of plant used and where it was harvested. :: Flocks
[via Springwise]
See also: :: Smartwool Requires Wool Suppliers To End "Mulesing", :: Alpaca: The Green Sheep?, and :: Sheep to Shear Themselves, Aided by a Mobile Phone?...
I'm waiting for the day I pop open my RSS feed and see 'Free Energy - Environmentally Enriching Solar PV System to be Distributed to Anyone Who Wants One'. But today was not that day. Instead something almost as exciting arrived, Somenath Mitra, PhD, professor and acting chair of Chemistry and Environmental Sciences at New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) (Pictured) has led a group in developing a 'A fullerene–single wall carbon nanotube complex for polymer bulk heterojunction photovoltaic cells' - I know...cool huh? Basically, the team developed a unique molecule made out of carbon nanotubes and buckyballs that can go inside organic solar cells. Now, I enjoy buckyball and nanotube papers about as much as a person possibly can (for e.g. see here, here,here or here). I admit, we (society) don't really know much about nanotube or buckyball health impacts, nor are the little buggers cheap. We (society again) need to seriously consider the materials we choose to use for our mass produced items. But what I do like is how the research group is mimicking nature (in the general design if not the materials). ...
When Kern County School District Superintendent Larry Reid decided it was time to take steps within the school district to improve air quality and reduce CO2 emissions he found he had an unlikely ally,,, Homebuilders. That's because for each new home built in the area developers contribute about $1200 into a fund to be used to help offset the pollution put out by the process as a result of a settlement between them and the Sierra Club.
Predictably, developers weren't so happy at first about the added cost to their building budgets, but now they've found that virtually every developer in the area has to make some sort of payment to help protect the environment, and the money is certainly being put to good use. Reid's used the $330K his district received from the fund to help offset the added cost of purchasing 7 additional clean burning compressed natural gas (CNG) buses, bringing the total to 38 of the 89 buses in the district that now run on the cleaner fuel. And at 160K per bus as opposed to 120K for the traditional diesel variety, the fund has really helped make the purchase possible. Long term, the fact that CNG is ultimately about one-third cheaper than diesel should help further offset the costs as well. Ultimately he's looking to replace all of the buses, a worthy goal for every school district and municipality in the country.via:: The Bakersfield Californian ...
Wind farms have always been a point of contention between conservationists and clean-power advocates, but do bird survival and wind energy have to be mutually exclusive concepts? This segment from KQED QUEST highlights California's largest wind-farm cluster at Altamont Pass, which kills as many as 1,300 birds of prey—including golden eagles, burrowing owls, and other threatened birds—each year because of collisions with the area's 5,400 turbines.
Now, scientists, wind companies, and environmentalists are working together to bird-proof the turbines of one of the most lethal wind projects for birds in the world. Make no mistake, we're staunchly on the side of the pro-wind-farm brigade—pollution from unsustainable sources such as coal-powered plants, for example, are certainly more lethal to bird populations—but if better turbine designs can also reduce bird mortality, you certainly won't find us squawking about them. :: KQED QUEST
See also: :: Cats More Lethal to Birds Than Wind Turbines, :: Common Eco-Myth: Wind Turbines Kill Birds, and :: A Risk Management Perspective on Bird Mortality...
Taking out the trash at home is one thing, but taking out the trash in space? Disposing of the millions of pieces of trash floating in space, 13,000 of which measure more than 30 ft long each, is not always just a question of sanitation: it can be a question of survival. Any one of those pieces, moving at speeds of up to several thousands of miles an hour, could pierce a hole in a space shuttle or the International Space Station. And while most space trash does eventually either burn up as it enters the Earth's atmosphere or fall harmlessly into an ocean or parcel of land upon successful re-entry, the odds are favorable enough for this to be a significant concern.
Under normal circumstances, astronauts get rid of their trash by waiting for a Russian Progress supply ship to take it away or by returning it to Earth on a shuttle flight. Sounds easy enough. But how to dispose of a hulking 1,360 pound coolant storage unit? The EAS (early ammonia servicing unit), located on the outside of the space station, is about to be replaced with a newer, more powerful system, but the astronauts haven't yet figured out a way to conveniently dispose it....
The shady Japanese Cedar, or Sugi, has long been a symbol of that island's cultural and religious connection to nature. Japan's national tree, avenues of these giants can often be found leading to temples and forming entire forests in the mountains. Because of the wood's softness however, Sugi has never been considered suitable for construction or furniture. This has led to an overabundance of these trees, which have began to squeeze out other species and limit biodiversity. ...
The beat goes on at TreeHugger Forums, and they've gotten big enough that we need some moderators; if you or someone you know would be good at keeping an eye on things, follow the instructions in the post. Meanwhile, some interesting new threads are growing by the minute. Here are some of the highlights...
1) User thefictionwelive presents "Andrew's Guide to Hugging Trees While Broke", which includes some pretty good tips for going green and saving green at the same time. Featured on the list are: buying second hand, using product service systems like the library and video rental services and staying away from cars for personal transportation.
2) MyDogRex says, "So let's be honest with ourselves for just a moment. Are you a NIMBY (not in my back yard)? I read a lot of postings about people getting upset when somebody doesn't want a wind turbine to 'spoil' their view. So I was curious what is your threshold level?" Could it be that prevailing NIMBYism is holding us back from a greener future?
3) User OG notes that the fallout continues at the nuclear plant near the epicenter of the earthquake in Japan earlier this week. Included in the difficulties are spilled waste drums, leaked radioactive water, fires and burst pipes, and a chink in the armor of those who portend that nuclear is "totally safe" energy. More hot topics after the jump...
The Nobody Chair is no ordinary place to park your tush. Danish design company Komplot used a manufacturing technique borrowed from the car industry to mold recycled plastic water bottles into the sleek, stackable sitters. Says a Hay spokesperson, "This is the first chair ever made with the textile alone as the construction. The material used is industrial felt mainly made out of recycled plastic bottles. The felt is put into a huge form press and heated up – when the chair comes out of the press its done," which is a very efficient-sounding process, to us. The chair has been shortlisted for the Craft and Design Biennial 2007 Prize; see the write-up and a pic of what the Nobody Chair looks like when it travels in packs, after the jump. ::Komplot via ::dezeen...
Plastic bags have been disappearing from towns and cities all over the world. San Fransisco, Modbury and Fitzroy Falls, as well as shops like Ikea. Many European countries have long charged for plastic bags, which has created a culture where people regularly bring their own reusable bags to supermarkets. This is just as convenient, and the waste savings are enormous.
In a surprising, but fantastic move, council leaders have suggested that London could be declared a plastic bag free zone. They would either be banned outright, or priced at 10p to both discourage their use and raise finds for recycling efforts. ...
We don't get to say this kind of thing very often, but find it particularly apropos: that is one sexy clothesline/drying rack. As we noted awhile back, 75% of the energy consumption of apparel comes from laundering (rather than production or distribution), so avoiding the dryer and using something like this beauty is a great way to cut that number way, way back, and tends to be a lot easier (and effective) during the warm summer months. It looks like it comes apart for easy transport and storage, too...nice. Get the full low-down on how to stay green while you clean with TreeHugger's How to Green Your Cleaning Guide. ::swissmiss via ::Apartment Therapy: Green...
One of the attractions of modern prefab has always been that one gets the design talent of a good architect without having to go through the time and expense of actually working with one; many people also are afraid of architects, fearing that they will get what the architect is selling rather than what they want to buy.
This is particularly an issue with modern design, where people are much more likely to be comfortable if they can see plans and pictures of a house that has already been resolved. It is the reason for the success of Michelle Kaufmann's modern prefabs; once the first is built the others are much easier.
For quite a few years now Greg Lavardera has been selling modern home plans, and now quite a few of them are getting built. Shown above is Greg's Plat House built for Don DeFeo, who confirms the point: According to the New York Times, the fact that the Plat House had been built before only helped to convince him. “There was one already completed in Arkansas,” said Mr. DeFeo, “and they had great pictures of the house online.”
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If you like your togs sweatshop-free, but don't want to fatten the pockets of a pornographer, check out Alternative Apparel's new eco-friendly line.
Making its debut late July, the Alternative Earth collection is made from pesticide-free organic cotton, recycled polyester, and rayon made from naturally occurring polymers, and then dyed with non-toxic, low-impact dyes.
The environmental-forwardness of the line can be somewhat misleading, however, when you examine the fine print. While some of the company's tees are indeed 100 percent organic cotton, certain styles, such as the Eco-Heather Sleeveless Hoodie, contain 38 percent cotton, with only 7 percent of that actually organic.
Expect clean, classic lines in the form of tees, hoodies, tanks, henleys, and track pants, available in both solid and heather colors. A basic crew-neck tee costs $28. :: Alternative Apparel
See also: :: The Gap Goes Organic-Cotton Pickin', :: H&M's New Organic Cotton Collection, and :: L. L. Bean Does Organic Cotton...
Gareth Grove bought an enormous Hummer. So big, in fact, that it wouldn't fit in his garage, and he had to leave it on the street in the leafy suburb where he lives. But that's OK, because Hummers are built to last, and the leaves wouldn't hurt it at all. And for five days it lasted just fine, it's rugged over-engineering valiantly fending off falling leaves and slight breezes.
However, two people then decided that they didn't agree with Hummers, and that they should make a statement about their disapproval. They smashed the Hummer's windows, slashed every tire and scratched into the paint the words, "FOR THE ENVIRON." Presumably over-estimating the enormity of the car and running out of space for the last word. But that was to be expected, because this was hardly the most well thought out plan ever conceived.
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Here you have your typical suburban development in Effingham County outside of Savannah, Georgia. It doesn't look much like Savannah, one of the most beautiful cities I have seen which was rather denser than this, and those lawns need a fair bit of water. And unfortunately, there isn't enough in the formerly vast Upper Floridian Aquifer; if you suck the fresh water out it sucks saltwater in to replace it. According to the New York Times, “Maybe not in one year or two,” said Steve Liotta, an Effingham County engineer, “but in 5, 10 or 15 years, wells in cities served by the Upper Floridan aquifer would increasingly become contaminated with saltwater.”
Now they are piping water in from Savanna and have banned new wells. Where people used to pay $30 a month for water they are now paying $ 300. “It can be very hard on a family’s budget.” But the community has no plans to cut back on residential or commercial growth and is "now trying to play catch-up to solve the problems.” How? ::New York Times...
Chris Mooney is not one to mince words. Within the first few pages of his latest book, he immediately sets out to clarify an important point, one that will likely take many readers aback: "Global warming did not cause Hurricane Katrina, or any other weather disaster."
In so doing, he helps set the tone for much of what the book will scrutinize: not whether global warming directly triggered the strong hurricanes we've already witnessed, but whether it is likely to further strengthen or otherwise alter the behavior of hurricanes. This point also relates to a greater overall theme that Mooney emphasizes throughout Storm World: the fact that most of science, meteorology and climate science included, is often fraught with more unknowns and uncertainty than clear answers.
After giving a brief synopsis detailing his personal experience dealing with Hurricane Katrina (a catastrophe he helped portend several months beforehand in the pages of The American Prospect), its aftermath and the genesis of his book, he plunges right into the early and extensive history of meteorology. What is interesting to note is that many of the characters and fundamental disagreements that he chronicles during this period, known as the American Storm Controversy, would find parallels years later in our modern hurricane-climate debate. ...
Photo credit: neforum
You'd better back away from your monitor because we're going to be sick, and it's not going to be pretty. Another primo example of human asshattery: A crew of Brazilian fishermen was caught on camera slaughtering 83 dolphins and then joking about their very illegal haul, according to Brazil's Ibama environmental protection agency.
The video, which was obtained by an undercover Ibama researcher and broadcast by the country's Globo TV, showed the fishermen netting the dolphins off the coast of Amapa state, near the point where the Amazon River flows into the Atlantic Ocean. Because the famously social and human-friendly marine mammals couldn't surface to breathe, they suffocated.
As the dolphins were hauled up onto the boat's deck, the fishermen on board laughed after someone said, "Everyone's going to jail after this filming!" Charges have not been filed because authorities are still trying to identify the parties involved, says Globo TV....
Shrewdly combining a respect for history and a current sensibility, Joel Voisard's 3Designs cool ottomans are centered on manufacturing and factory parts boxes from the 1920's. He spices them up by blending in found components, such as fixtures, casters, and even old stereo knobs with high-end upholstery giving each piece a polished, vintage feel that transcends different eras and becoming a funky compilation of innovative characteristics and classic persona. The finished pieces also open and can be used for storage. Above is "Animal," which Voisard characterizes as representing "the concrete jungle of NYC"; we love the almost cartoony juxtaposition of materials and style. Beneath the fold: pics of something called "White Knuckler." Put your feet up at ::Voisard 3Design...
We have said at TreeHugger that some of the most important ways to live a green life, lie in the small simple things. One suggestion towards this is wearing slippers around the house instead of turning the heating up. TreeHugger does love a good slipper, like these folding felt slippers, the renew slippers and the po-zu natural slippers. If you are crafty why not try recycling some warm worn old clothes and make yourself a pair of cosy slippers. If you are in the Southern Hemisphere these will be particularly welcomed. ::Sew Green slipper tutorial...
Have you been itching to buy FirstSolar (FSLR), but nervous to get on board with the stock going hyperbolic? If yes, Barrons just did a front page story on how FSLR "may get singed." Given the stock's unbelievable run over recent weeks, investors are likely to bag some profits ahead of the Quarter 2 earnings release on July 30. Barrons feels that recent developments in Germany are negative for FSLR, and that FSLR is incorrectly perceived as being a thin-solar technology that will miss out on the "Solar 2.0" boom.
One of the trends in ethical and environmental investing right now includes alternative energy ETF investing. ETFs allow you to buy and sell funds on the stock market, much as you do stocks. One of the newer offerings in terms of alternative energy ETFs is the Market Vectors Global Alternative Energy ETF (GEX), based on the stocks of 30 companies that are involved in alternative energy, making it both highly green and highly risky.
Microfinance is the business of providing very small loans, or "microloans", to poor communities around the world in an effort to spur local entrepreneurship and community development. With most loans valued at less than $100, this is oftentimes all that is needed to jump start economic growth in impoverished areas, but one of the major challenges that the microfinance industry is facing right now is how to raise $300 billion to reach the required geographies....
TreeHugger loves to talk about eco-myths, such as the perennial complaint that wind turbines are a danger to bird life. One common assertion, which we have not been quite sure whether to place as eco myth or not, is that driving an old car is greener than buying a new, fuel efficient one. This view cropped up in the comments section of How to Green Your Car, and it has also lead Archaeo to ask ‘Old Vehicle or New?’ over at our forums. So which is it? How can you evaluate the energy and emissions involved in manufacture, vs. the emissions released during use? Fortunately, Triple Pundit has done some serious math on this issue in their Ask Pablo feature, and the results come out in favour of purchasing a new, efficient vehicle:
“Continuing to drive an older car with poor fuel economy is less environmentally friendly than getting a new car that gets drastically better fuel economy. You can take my factors above and calculate the exact energy use for your old vehicle and a new vehicle to see the comparison. Keep in mind that these results are for the energy used, not the carbon dioxide emissions, but the two are highly correlated since most of our energy comes from fossil fuels.”
Chuck Hoberman wowed this Treehugger at the Transportable Environments conference a few years ago; he builds toys and sculptures that expand and contract and which are a hit at science museums. He also builds bigger architectural transformations such as the Iris Dome at Expo 2000 or the fabulous stage set at the opening of the Salt Lake City Olympics. He is part of the "smart geometry" movement and even has designed transformer furniture. Now he wows Japan's PingMag in an extensive interview. We find that so many TreeHugger themes, from transformers to transportable design to even biomimicry come up in this one interivew, for example:
your website states that you design objects that transform like natural organisms… Like what?
There is an aspect of our design practise which you can call biomimicry: It is part of the general strategy to use nature as an example to design, particularly with its performance and action. We imitate the way organisms grow or change shape or adapt themselves to different conditions. However, the transformable systems that we develop are technology and mathematically based. Basically they are a practical means to build structures or develop products that can change size and shape in order to have some structural benefit, a reason. Read interview at ::PingMag...
China's seasonal flooding--and the controversial Three Gorges Dam meant to help control it--have led to China's newest environmental threat: billions of rats. By releasing a huge flow of Yangtze River water to control flooding in the face of the annual rainy season, dam officials inundated the banks of Dongting Lake, a series of wetlands and lakes downstream of the Three Gorges that stretches across Hunan province. Resident rodents -- whose numbers have grown unusually large due to an earlier dry spell, and to a local culinary interest in snakes, rats' main predator -- migrated en masse to dry land, leaving behind them a trail of destruction in about 20 counties, the rodents' munching so loud that villagers could reportedly hear it from inside their homes.
Though rat infestations after floods are not uncommon, this is "the largest rat disaster the lakeside region has experienced in the last 10 years," Zuo Shigeng, a local agricultural official, told China Daily. As one farmer said, "It's like the mopping up by enemy troops in wars. We have nothing left."
On top of massive destruction to agriculture (6,000 square miles of crops have been damaged), the rodents threaten to spread disease in especially vulnerable areas, a concern that has led residents to bury or cremate more than 2 million rodents -- their bodies weighing an estimated 90 tonnes in total. To kill the rats, people have resorted to poison, some of it illegal, which has led to the widespread deaths of cats and stoked official fears about soil pollution and the development of a "super rat," immune to pesticides.
But some enterprising souls have reportedly entered the rat race with a different idea (and with apparently no qualms about China's recent reputation for food safety): selling them as food. ...
While it’s true that the principals behind Silicon Valley's green energy start-ups have many worries, homework usually isn't one of them. That’s not the case, however, behind a new venture called Calsunergy. The chief executive hopes to launch the company before beginning eighth grade in the fall. The chief technical officer is just getting ready to start sixth grade. And the company's chief financial officer and vice president of marketing are readying themselves for only the fifth grade! ...
While it's always encouraging to see companies turn over a new leaf and adopt a more pro-active, sustainable approach to conducting business, we all know that for every one company that genuinely follows through with its lofty commitments, ten more will try to greenwash their way to that goal. Case in point is Target. Although it may claim to be committed to environmental values and to "respecting the communities and ecosystems" it "operates in" by reducing its energy impact, gaffes like this only serve to highlight the emptiness of their green rhetoric.
Ignoring five previous orders from the EPA to remove all cans of illegally imported confetti string products from its shelves, Target will be slapped with a $120,000 civil penalty for carrying and selling Horrible Spooky String. Many of these confetti string products are known to contain hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), toxic chemicals which, in addition to increasing one's risk of developing skin cancer, have been found to deplete the planet's ozone layer. ...
We wondered about the magazine ad we saw with happy flowers coming out of smokestacks and the message "Don't throw anything away, there is no away" in 70's happy hippy font over the top. We were reminded of Collin's little vase from the other day, a strange juxtaposition. The copy in the ad states that Shell recycles its emissions of carbon dioxide, which contribute to global warming, by piping them into greenhouses. It also states that its emissions of sulfur dioxide, another pollutant, are used to make concrete.
Dutch authorities thought so too: "What they said in the advertisement was too strong," said Simone Wesseling, a spokeswoman for the Dutch Advertising Code Authority. "Shell suggests that all of these gases are recycled and that is not the case, so our committee found a misleading environmental claim."
Shell defends it as being allegorical, saying "the image of flowers was acceptable because readers would clearly identify it as imaginary." Their website points to measures taken at the Geelong Refinery in Australia, more information here.
We think it should have been pulled for breaching the Birkenstock/Poncho rule of tired hippie graphic design, but will settle for exaggeration and greenwashing. ::IHT via ::Desmogblog
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The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) is looking for artists to submit their work for an upcoming Recycled Fashion Show on August 16, 2007. The show will be a part of the RISD Museum Gallery Night program, which is a free event and open to the public, and if accepted your pieces will be shown at one of the top design schools in the country. Submissions can be anything from clothing to jewelry to shoes and handbags. If you are interested in participating, a digital image of the piece is requested along with a short description and your name. Submissions can be sent to Deb Clemons at: dclemons (at) risd (dot) edu by this Friday, July 20, 2007. She also requests that you put “Fashion Show” in the subject line. Good luck to all, and, we might just see you there! ::RISD Museum...
With over 30,000 servers and 12,000 customers, Rackspace is one of the biggest hosting providers in the world. Big companies can be slower to take environmental initiatives - they are aren't running all these boxes off of solar, for example - yet when they do make a move it usually has a bigger, longer lasting impact. TH recently had the 'tunity to interview John Engates, CTO of Rackspace, to see what they were up to.
Hi John, can you explain what Rackspace does?
In its simplest form, we offer managed hosting; this is an offering whereby companies look to outsource their hosting solutions.
Rackspace Managed Hosting delivers enterprise-level managed services to businesses of all sizes. Serving more than 12,000 customers in eight data centers worldwide, Rackspace integrates the industry’s best technologies for each customer need and delivers it as a service via the company’s award-winning Fanatical Support™. Through trusted relationships, Rackspace serves as an extension of its customers’ IT departments, enabling them to focus on their core business.
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Vinegar is a pretty versatile substance. Basically just acetic acid, it can be used to replace many commercial cleaning products which can be harmful to the environment. Our guide to greening your cleaning says, "most of the conventional cleaning products we all grew up with are petroleum-based and have dubious health and environmental implications.". Also, if you're like me, some cleaning products can give you a bit of a headache after use, which shouldn't happen with vinegar. Another benefit is cost - some cleaning products are very expensive, but vinegar can be bought quite cheaply....
To bring out your inner scientist, along with the gardening urge: your own personal hydroponic garden. This one is designed by two Swedes who lament our lack of connection to nature, due to the fact that people are moving to big cities and parks are becoming fewer and fewer. The Streamgarden is a hydroponic cultivator designed for plants. It is for people who travel frequently but still want to be greeted by a living plant when they return home.
Hydroponic systems are used by NASA in space, and commercial greenhouses worldwide. It's a tank system that doesn't require earth, just water and fertilizer and an electric pump. Grow your own mint, herbs or geraniums and be welcomed by something healthy and inspiring. The designers have also created an internal plant wall for offices and they invest 10% of their annual profit in renewable energy. :: Green Fortune via :: Financial Times...
I struggled with the title for this post; calling a nightclub "low energy" conjures images of people asleep in the banquettes or draped over the bar. Bar Code in Vauxhall is anything but, and on July 21 will celebrate a year of low energy design.
According to architects Woods Bagot, it is so efficient that it runs on " about the same amount of energy it takes to make a cup of tea.” Dezeen says The club employs LED lights that emit very little heat and so reduce the need for air conditioning, and has fridges that open from the top to minimise cold air escape. (TreeHugger looked at top opening fridges earlier, they really work)
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" Oyster Pleasance" by Sally Spencer-Davies
After we wrote our post about the revitalization of the English Seaside, Alex of ::Shedworking reminded us that there are a lot of initiatives going to make the seaside fun again. One is Bathing Beauties, a project "conceived by lead artist Michael Trainor to create a series of dramatic and beautiful new seaside architecture for a superb but partly forgotten 10 mile stretch of Lincolnshire coastline, UK, from Mablethorpe to Anderby Creek." It included a worldwide open competition that attracted 240 entries. What a way to renew and revitalize.
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Vatican City recently announced plans to offset the tiny nation's carbon emissions to zero for (the Year of Our Lord) 2007. Partnering with the American firm Planktos and Hungarian company KlimFa, the Vatican will sponsor the planting of hundreds of trees in Hungary. The sponsorship is a bit of a formality as the two firms have volunteered to absorb the costs of planting the holy trees. But all three partners acknowledge that the project presents a major opportunity to raise awareness about global climate change and the possibilities for helping to mitigate the impact. The Vatican has made recent overtures toward environmental action, including installing solar panels to power an audience hall and calling on the faithful to care for creation. "You can emit less carbon dioxide by not using heaters or by doing without a car. Or you can do penance, in this case by planting trees that convert CO2 into oxygen," said Monsignor Melchor Sanchez de Toca Alameda, an official at the Pontifical Council for Culture. Via ::Life In Italy...
Many people are switching to flat screen TV sets, but have owned those specialized deep TV cabinets that were designed for the earlier age of deep CRT displays, either in those wedding-cake entertainment units like the one in the picture (why were they always so traditional and ugly?) or just very deep cabinets that no longer serve any useful purpose.
What are do doing with your old TV cabinet?
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Sometimes we TreeHuggers love re-use so much you'd think we were all born in the Great Depression. Or, at least that we want to avoid something worse happening. After reading a Wall Street Journal story about states managing items confiscated by the US Transportation Security Administration, we were thinking someone should design a chair made from baseball bats and furry hand-cuffs. Ohhh baby.
The "...TSA, a division of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, relies on state agencies...to offload tons of other items that passengers "voluntarily surrender..." Some states trash or destroy some of the items, along with the shampoos, toothpaste and other gels and liquids banned in large amounts after a British bomb scare last August. But many states now sell the banned objects and keep the proceeds. Alabama, Arkansas and Illinois tout them online. Kentucky enjoys a cottage industry in Internet sales of miniature Louisville Sluggers surrendered after factory tours in the baseball bats' hometown. Pennsylvania, which collects goods at 13 airports including New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, says it collects a total of 2.5 tons of TSA goods a month and that the items, sold on eBay, since 2004 have raised $360,000 for state coffers, as of June..""
"Passengers often relinquish weaponry and restraints they had wrongly thought were mere toys. "We've got lots of furry handcuffs," says Kenneth Hess, director of Pennsylvania's Bureau of Supplies and Surplus Operations. "Riding crops. Studded collars.""
Via:: Wall Street Journal Online (subscription only; but hurry up before Rupert buys it and the rates go up). Image credit:: Flickr, via Boing Boing....
"Business Roundtable, an association of 160 chief executive officers of leading U.S. companies, has announced a new policy statement on climate change, acknowledging that climate change poses a serious risk and that the time for action is now...The Roundtable’s new policy statement proposes a series of benchmarks and principles against which climate change policy proposals should be measured."
"Chad Holliday, chairman and CEO, DuPont, and chairman of Business Roundtable’s Environment, Technology and the Economy Task Force, commented, “The thinking of U.S. CEOs on climate change is evolving significantly. A growing number of CEOs view it as a major issue for their companies and many of us have called for timely U.S. action.”"
The 4-page statement can be downloaded as a pdf file here. We notice that Business Roundtable members like trees. See below for an excerpt on that subject (bolding is ours)....
Looks like my wish for 2007 is coming true. With the greening of the Evan Almighty film production and the promise of the Get on Board campaign that eco practices would extend to the entire NBC Universal media conglomerate, Variety's web exclusive indicates that, at least from a content perspective, things are on track. Next November, environmental themes will be scripted into programming as part of a week-long "Green is Universal" initiative. Bravo Media president Lauren Zalaznick, head of NBC U's Green Council, said that all NBC U networks would participate including broadcast, the cable networks, news, sports, daytime and latenight. Understand who Zalaznick is. Amongst her credits are: co-producer on the movie Kids, producer of environmental- toxicity-horror-arthouse classicSafe, and VH1 executive producer of VH1's pre-blog meta show Pop Up Videos and Divas. Most importantly you not only remember those last two shows, you are also aware of VH1 as a network and a brand. Why? Because Zalaznick was called in to use her ample skills to rebrand, that is, redesign that network. It should come as no surprise that we TreeHuggers like goodredesign just as Zalaznick becoming NBC U's Green Tsar is a wise appointment. Of this new green scribing initiative, Zalaznick says:
For the first time ever, the massive resources of the entire NBC U family will stand together behind a single pro-social cause.
Video of Zalaznick here. More and a video scene from The Office when you jump....
Paul Sprague likes boomerangs. Boomerangs and hot-dogs. And he likes nothing more than eating hot-dogs while throwing boomerangs. He has invented the Boom Chef, which is a solar powered grill that he uses to unite these two unlikely things. He describes it as, "a black aluminum grill that fits inside a wooden frame, glass on the top & bottom and reflectors to bounce in extra sunlight. I lined the inside of the box with aluminum and weatherstripped the glass. That's pretty much it. Cheap to build, free to operate - just the way I like things."...
Maybe my ears are just pointed in a very specific direction, but it seems rare when a day passes and I don't hear someone extolling the possibilities of clean technology. But it's not entirely clear what clean technology encompasses and how this very broad new category of technology is going to benefit our world in the coming decades.
I honestly don't know...but Ron Pernick does. Ron is the head of the leading clean tech research firm, Clean Edge. His experiences at Clean Edge working with experts from industries ranging from carbon composites to water filtration has made him a leading clean technology expert, and uniquely qualified to write a book entitled "The Clean Tech Revolution."
We're very happy to have Ron Pernick as our EcoGeek of the Week.
EcoGeek: The work that Clean Edge does seems extremely important, even though I don't really have any idea what you do there. Can you tell us about Clean Edge and your work?...
Adria Vasil has been writing the popular and Ecoholic column for NOW Magazine in Toronto since the spring of 2004. Adria has a degree in political science and cultural anthropology from the University of Toronto and a degree in magazine journalism from Ryerson. An advocate for the earth, women's issues and human rights since her teens, Vasil has appeared on Canada AM, The Gill Deacon Show, MTV Canada, MuchMusic, Book TV, CBC's Newsworld and much more to promote green living. She has just released Ecoholic, the book showing Canadians how they can live earth-friendly. We talked with Adria about how she got into journalism and where she sees herself in the matrix we call the media.
TreeHugger: Did you always know you wanted to get into journalism?...
It's summer and you love to travel, but you don't want to waste a lot of your money on gas. Fortunately, there's a lot of great advice circulating around the interwebs on effective ways to reduce your fuel usage and, even better, to find alternate, low-impact means of transportation. One particularly helpful guide crossed our desks earlier today, courtesy of Lifehacker, and we thought we'd highlight some of the tips:
1. Brake the right way
2. Ride the slipstream
3. Rent a smaller car
More after the jump....
This month's I.D. magazine takes a curated, contemplative look at the best design (consumer products, graphics, packaging, environments, furniture, equipment, concepts and interactive) from the past year, and showcases some really interesting and progressive ideas and designs. After pondering the question "Is it really necessary?" when considering the over 400 entries in the category, the judges picked Yves Béhar's Leaf LED lamp (featured here and here on TreeHugger) gets the nod for "Best of Category" in the Consumer Products category (page 66) and Nike's Considered shoes earn a Design Distinction (page 76) for again proving that "Green doesn't have to be ugly," as juror Paul Priestman noted. An Honorable Mentioned was awarded to the H-Racer, the world's smallest fuel cell vehicle; (page 80) if only its steering was radio-controllable, the jury wished.
Allen Berger's book, Drosscape: Wasting Land in Urban America (page 106) was the jury's favorite tome (receiving a Design Distinction in the Graphics category) about environmental issues, not just for its content, but its complex, smart, readable graphic presentation. Our pals at WorldChanging earned an Honorable Mention for the WorldChanging Book (page 111); Good Magazine (page 116) and the book version of An Inconvenient Truth(page 116) followed suit with their own Honorable Mentions as well.
We could go on and on, mentioning the Loblolly House's accolades or Humanscale's distinction (not that they don't deserve it), but we'll sum up with this instead: this issue is full of the best examples of what can happen when design and sustainability come together. The results can look beautiful, outperform other conventional products, solve real problems, and make the world a greener, healthier, happier place, and that's what great design is supposed to do. I.D. magazine
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So let's imagine you're stranded on an island, in a forest or any other isolated natural locale of your choice: one of your top priorities will undoubtedly be ensuring you have a proper supply of safe drinking water. But, assuming you've lost your way (or crashed, etc) and now find yourself in said natural locale, you're only likely to have access to sea water or water from a stream or river. What are you to do?
Well, if you happen to have this nifty survival guide lying around, you'll know that boiling water is the most effective way of getting rid of any nasty pathogens that might render your drinking experience, shall we say, "unpleasant." In fact, boiling water is a much better way of obtaining safe drinking water, even when compared to modern marvels like filtering devices or chemical treatments. ...
We have recently heard from a few readers of TreeHugger that they experienced an aggressive popup ad while visiting the site. We have not found the source of the popup on our servers, and are now working with the various third party ad services that partner with TreeHugger to try and isolate the issue.
In the meantime, if you have been affected by these ads, and are concerned about malware resulting from them, please use the following instructions to remove any malware from your computer:
How to Remove DriveCleaner (Security Response from Symantec)
How to Remove SystemDoctor (Security Response from Symantec)
Wikipedia entry on this family of malware (including section on removal)...
Guangzhou has been the source of some unusual stories on TreeHugger. First there was the news that 'professional noses' had been employed to track down the source of pollution. The workers had only a three year career, after that their noses were no longer at the top of their game and were forced into retirement.
Now there's an equally oddball story - an organized swim through China's third longest river to celebrate the new, non-polluted river. 3,500 people set off across the water as the Mayor fired a starters pistol. It was organized to celebrate the clean-up, after rapid pollution had left it highly polluted - and highly polluted in China is quite a sight....
We have shown a number of solar powered streetlights before that look more elegant, but this new unit from Sharp has a number of interesting features, including a very directed distribution (helping reduce light pollution), 1800 lumen output and a special earthquake sensor that will make it run for over 48 hours straight if it detects a tremor over 5 on the Richter scale. Build in an alarm system so the panels don't get stolen, or perhaps Wifi, and it's perfect. ::Akihabara News via ::Ubergizmo
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Who hasn't heard this familiar refrain: "Be sure to put on a thick layer of sunscreen before you go out into the sun"? Whether you've heard it from your parents, your doctor, or even that so-called health expert on TV, the need to wear sunscreen to protect your skin is a mantra that has been firmly ingrained into our heads since early childhood. And while that may be true in principle, the problem is that too many sunscreen manufacturers haven't been holding up their part of the bargain by selling products that actually protect you.
Indeed, a rash of recent studies has shown that labels on several popular brands are not only misleading and confusing but, in some cases, completely false. After testing 786 name-brand sunscreens to gauge their stated UVA protection, potential health hazards and stability in sunlight, the Environmental Working Group determined that only 17% of them provide good protection and minimal risks. In addition, the study revealed that 50% of the tested products made claims that would be considered misleading under the FDA's draft sunscreen safety standards....
We’re thrilled to announce that Laura Michalchyshyn, Sundance Channel EVP and GM Programming and Creative Affairs, has announced that Sundance Channel has ordered second seasons of the solution-based series Big Ideas for a Small Planet, as well as interstitial series Eco-Biz and Ecoists. In addition the network has acquired the U.S. rights to the second season of the BBC series It's Not Easy Being Green. Said Michalchyshyn:
THE GREEN is a year-round commitment for Sundance Channel. In addition to the dozens of documentary films and other short form programming we air, we continue to slot in new series to keep the block current and fresh.
Behind THE GREEN scenes and video clips below the fold....
Witold Rybczynski asks about sustainable design: "does all this really amount to a new type of "green architecture," or "eco-tecture," as the New York Times Magazine inelegantly called it not long ago? Or is green design just the equivalent of better plumbing?" He has been there before- shown above is "a model house that demonstrated a number of energy-saving and environmentally friendly features, built 35 years ago. These included a self-contained toilet, a rooftop solar still to recycle shower water, a wind machine to generate electricity, and a solar oven (in foreground at right). We gratefully accepted Buckminster Fuller's suggestion and christened the house the Ecol Operation."
He has a great slide show covering a history of green building design at ::Slate...
Debunking the arguments of global warming skeptics has become somewhat of a hobby for us here at TreeHugger. Even though the consensus around the issue of climate change has long passed the stage of critical mass, with an overwhelming majority of scientists now embracing the view that anthropogenic influences are contributing to trends in rising global temperatures and sea levels (amongst other things), there still remain a stubborn few who refuse to recognize the facts and accede to reality.
And while we could just as easily continue to expose the fallacy of their conjectures and evidence (and probably will to some extent), we thought it might be interesting to try to understand the methodology behind the madness. Luckily for us, Ian Enting, a professor at Australia's University of Melbourne, has gone ahead and done the work for us....
Andrew Maynard is at it again, with Poop House, his answer to the Australian drought. Water is too valuable to be just something that is just used; he turns it into the main structural element of the building. Thinking that the greenest building is no building at all, the structure is nothing but an inner and outer layer of polyethylene forms. When you build your house you purchase enough water to fill the inner transparent form, which takes the shape of an arch....
TreeHugger has seen examples of growing furniture -- a couple of times, in fact -- but this is an example of furniture that grows with you. Joel Hesselgren's bed, the winner of the Stockholm Furniture Fair 2007, appears to be magically floating (it's supported underneath at the two opposing corners, which also double as end tables), and can also magically double in size. No need for a new frame when you can adjust the one you've got and allow you bed to "grow" with your needs; wouldn't it be great to have a bed that would last you from grade school to retirement and beyond? We aren't sure how the mechanics of it work, exactly, but we know we like it. Hit the jump to see the double-wide version, via ::Freshome and ::Yanko Design...
This Old House looks at GreenGrid, a green roof system that they suggest can be done do-it-yourself. The GreenGrid system is based on a 2 foot by 2 foot plastic container with dimples on the bottom to provide drainage. The GreenGrid site doesn't particularly note that it is for DIYers, so we might point out a few things to worry about:
-it is heavy at 15 to 18 pounds per square foot- can your roof take it?
-how many drains or scuppers do you have? If the soil gets through the filter cloth and the drains get clogged, that can quickly increase the weight on the roof and cause structural failure.
This old house says "everyone loves an option that cuts out extra labor, materials, and middlemen" but sometimes it is nice to hire someone with experience and lots of liability insurance. ::This Old House and ::Green Grid Roofs...
Aviation creates a lot of pollution; carbon and noise. A new report has said that people all over London are being affected by Heathrow airport, even those on the other side of the city, many miles away.
The independent research consultancy, Bureau Veritas, measured noise levels all over the city, and found that it 'dominated the environment'. I used to live in Brixton, south London, and I'm going to agree with them 100% (although joy-riders and sirens also feature prominently in the background noise)....
Wasteful packaging is something that annoys TreeHugger to no end (we had two contests -- one showcasing the worst of it and spotlighting the way to do packaging right); there is simply no reason for excessive packaging, other than laziness and poor, thoughtless design. Thankfully, more and more examples of smart packaging are popping up, and we're excited to add one of the best examples we've seen yet: the lite2go by knoend. The San Francisco-based designers have devised a functional lighting system that uses the packaging as the product, practically eliminating any waste that would ordinarily come with unwrapping or opening the packaging. The outer shell of the package becomes the shade for the lamp, leaving just a cardboard band and some hemp twine, both of which are either easily recycled or composted. "We looked for a way to make lighting 'lighter.' How could a lighting concept be more simple, yet still uplifting and functional? Our answer was to rid the packaging, and include all components needed for illumination. Everything in one neat little package, ready to use off the shelf, ready to go, ready to lite2go!" they say, and we think it's brilliant. More pics and details after the jump....
This story of a worldwide shortage of wind turbines parallels what started happening in early 2006 with a worldwide shortage of the silicon ingots needed for manufacture of solar photovoltaic cells. "A worldwide shortage of wind-turbines has been caused by a sudden surge in demand and the frenzied industrial growth of China creating delivery delays that could take years to rectify. Plans to cut carbon dioxide emissions and meet more of Britain's energy needs by an expansion of offshore wind farms have had to be revised, because experts now believe the chances of building them before 2010 at the earliest is unlikely."
"'There is a worldwide shortage of wind turbines,' said Dr Gordon Edge, director of economics and markets at the British Wind Energy Association, who claimed that a recent series of tax credits introduced in the US for the American wind power industry had sparked a construction boom...'The US industry is going hell for leather at the moment and relying on imports of wind turbines from Europe."...
Well, had we been writing we would have covered this story. Those who think that geo-engineering as a solution to climate change is new, should look back 50 years, where Russian scientist P.M. Borisov met with the Canadian Government to propose building a dam across the Bering Strait. All that ice up north is such an impediment to development:
"If the Arctic ice is once melted much less of the sun's radiation will be reflected out into space and therefore the arctic ice cap will not re-form. An ice-free Arctic Ocean would be a great boon to oceanic shipping, especially between Europe and East Asia. Much land in northern Canada and Siberia would be freed of permafrost and made suitable for agriculture. Borisov believed that an ice-free Arctic Ocean would lead to increased evaporation of water and hence increased rainfall worldwide, including the region of Sahara Desert leading to grass growing there. Borisov considers all of the impacts of the melting of the Arctic ice cap to be beneficial. He asserts that the melting of the Greenland ice cap would raise sea levels at a rate of only 1.5 to 2 mm per year." ...
Atlantic City, New Jersey used to be the place to go when it was hot; it was not too far from New York and was a great vacation spot. In the UK, people used to go to the seaside, the piers, away from the cities by short, convenient train rides. However when plane travel became affordable and fast, the nearby seaside resorts all faded away.
Now, in the UK anyways, they are enjoying a revival as people look for ways to vacation closer to home, and top designers are moving in to make these tired old seasides more interesting and viable. They are demonstrating, like Gehry did in Bilbao, how good architecture is transformative.
The coolest intervention is Thomas Heatherwick's East Beach Cafe in Littlehampton. Stephen Bayley in the Observer said "Apart from being a pleasure in its own right, the ambition is that the East Beach Cafe might be the grit that forms a pearl, beginning a cultural and social revival of the sadly neglected South Coast. Before Heatherwick, Littlehampton had been a frankly dismal final chapter in the terrible history of the English seaside." ...
Think about the reasons that you use energy. At first you might think that you consume power and goods in order to keep you alive and sustain yourself. However, humans could survive with only a small amount of locally grown food, and minimal heating. In fact, most of our energy consumption simply serves to make life better; more comfortable and more enjoyable.
Therefore, the ratio of happiness to power consumption is a useful metric to measure. It isn't the most quantifiable thing, but the New Economics Foundation (Nef) attempt just that with their Happy Planet Index (HPI). They recently published a report that measures people's opinions on how happy they are, their life expectancy and their carbon footprint in order to see if more energy usage means happier citizens. It doesn't....
We talk often about how energy efficient New York is on a per capita basis but in the New York Times, the director of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability admits“ The main reason that New Yorkers use much less electricity is that our apartments are so much smaller” than homes in other cities. Most of the buildings are still energy hogs, and emit 80% of the City's greenhouse gases.
Now Mayor Bloomberg has introduced a plan to reduce emissions by 30% by 2030. However 85% of the buildings that will exist then are already standing and need to be retrofitted.
Some things are cheap (fluorescent bulbs) and others take longer for a payback, but Ashok Gupta of the National Resources Defense Council makes a very good point that environmentalists (and TreeHugger) sell themselves short by focusing on payback periods. “Nobody asks what the payback period is for a marble lobby.” Full illustration below fold and article at ::New York Times
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We apologize for the bad pun in the title, sometimes it's just hard to resist. Fair trade is a familiar concept to our readers. Aside from writing about well-known fair trade commodities like chocolate and coffee, we’ve also seen posts on everything from fair trade sports gear and sneakers, to the possibility of setting up fair trade standards for aquarium fish. Now we can add another commodity to our list, cashew nuts. Just Cashews is a business unit of a non-profit organization called Earth Hero, and is dedicated to working with farmers to sell fairly traded cashews:
“Just Cashews is committed to alleviating poverty, malnutrition and exploitation by creating a fair trade market for organic, fair trade, cashews and working to develop standards for fair trade cashew production throughout the world. By purchasing Just Cashews, you have a direct impact on the quality of life for peasant farmers and their families in Central America.”
Is that a flower…or a "giant phallus"? In San Diego, "organic" design takes on a whole new meaning with the heated controversy over a proposed green 40-story residential tower.
“If it looks like a phallic symbol, someone has a strange perception,” says Sandor Shapery, the San Diego-based developer behind the design. “You can find sex anywhere if you want to...There's just some sick people out there.”
But architect Gwynne Pugh--of the internationally-renowned firm Pugh + Scarpa--has a different vision. He was hired by the downtown redevelopment agency to review the city's new building designs.
“With its rounded forms and swelling of the uppermost floors...this building structure is very phallic," he says.
Unfortunately, the tower's design is essential to energy conservation goals, which include recycling water from the cooling system for use in the swimming pool, laundry, and irrigation.
Shapery now plans to make some modifications before the proposal is reviewed again. Thanks tipster Mark. via ::SignonSanDiego More on Pugh + Scarpa ::New Future for Solar Panels ::Dwell Home II See also this phallic solar plant and the Rorschach Inkblot Test....
Ever wanted to find a fun, interesting way to get kids to consider the implications of their action, particularly in regards to global warming? Well, that's the idea behind this latest enviro-game for kids, where the decisions they make in the beginning can have powerful repercussions for their character down the road. The game itself is the brainchild of a husband and wife development team in France who came home one day to find a dumping company setting up an immense landfill next to their home in Burgundy. That really hit home and got them thinking about the environment, and ways they could get kids involved protecting the planet using their given talents as software developers.
Using the experience of having a landfill set up next to their home in the real world, they’ve worked it into the game as kids need to work with a “hero” of their choice to help stop the dump company and save the planet by choosing strategic, earth-friendly behavior “cards” which then have an impact on their character’s life in the game. Of course, decisions are not always easy, as in the real world where balancing a multitude of needs and interests often makes the best decision difficult to reach. Along the way kids will get to learn more about various environmental subjects. Those include waste, chemicals, CO2 emissions, self-sufficiency, and the availability of water. And for the moment they’re offering a limited but free download of the game as a trial run, so if it sounds like fun to you head here and give it a shot.
via:: Jasmin Malik Chua...
This is the month for celebrities to show their stuff in support of climate change. Many are advocating political action to pressure governments to act. First we had Live Earth and now it's the Big Ask, an on-line petition. Started by Friends of the Earth, the campaign hopes to force the government to cut CO2 emissions by three per cent each year. A recent survey revealed that over two thirds of people in the UK want the Government to introduce a new law requiring carbon dioxide emissions to be cut annually.
Celebrities attaching their name and You-Tube clip to the cause include Jude Law, James Blunt and Gillian Anderson. So far 171,432 people have participated by using their camera or mobile phone to record a short video clip of themselves asking their MP to support the campaign. When they join the march, their MP will automatically receive a link to the recording. All of them can be viewed at the good looking website. :: The Big Ask Via :: the london paper...
Many of us will agree that Buckminster Fuller was way ahead of the crowd with his thinking on sustainability and eco-friendly designs. In his time he was considered an eccentric inventor with impractical ideas, now we think he's a genius! Not all of us can be ahead of our time, but we can at least try to be in our time. Here is a chance for people to catch up with Bucky's thinking, be inspired by his work and take the opportunity to address prevalent issues in contemporary society. The Buckminster Fuller Institute has launched a Challenge for, "Design science solutions... that exemplify the trimtab principle." The trimtab principal can be used to describe, "An artifact, or system, specifically designed and placed in the environment at such a time, in such a place, where its effects would be maximized, thereby effecting the most advantageous change with the least resources, time and energy. Doing more with less." ...
"The practice of inter-cropping — which Chinese farmers have practiced for thousands of years — involves growing two or more crops in alternate rows in the same place and at same time, and can greatly increase grain yields. Li Long, Zhang Fusuo and colleagues at China Agricultural University looked at below-ground biological interactions between faba bean and maize...
They carried out field trials in the western Chinese province of Gansu over four years, and showed that inter-cropping with faba bean increased the maize yield by an average of 43 per cent." Faba bean yield also increased significantly.
"The researchers found that the roots of the faba bean plant released organic acids into the soil, which increases the solubility of inorganic phosphorus, a plant nutrient. Plants take up soluble phosphorus more readily, which explains the increase in the crops' yields."...
(Angra 1 and 2 nuclear plants, in Angra dos Reis, Rio de Janeiro) The Brazilian Energetic Policy Council approved recently the construction the country’s third nuclear plant, Angra 3: a project that was paralyzed for over 20 years for lack of funding. According to Spanish BBC, Brazilian president Luis Inacio Lula da Silva had declared in the past his wish to increase the country nuclear capacity in fear of an energetic shortage, and some sectors had urged the government to accelerate the construction of nuclear plants, some of them for the jobs it would bring. Brazilian dependence on hydroelectric generators could cause electricity shortage by the end of this decade if the rains slow down, the media informed. The construction of Angra 3 could cost over 3,500 million dollars, and if finally approved by the president, would be completed in 2013, increasing the energetic capacity in 1,300 megawatts. The plant is supposed to be placed in Angra dos Reis, a city from the south of Rio de Janeiro, where the other two centrals are located. In order to secure the construction of the plant, the project has to be approved by the Brazilian Environment and Natural Resources Institute (IBAMA), which is under the Environment Ministry, and that previously voted against the plan. This was not the only organism to take part against the project.
Via Spanish BBC...
Nitrogen can be a problem- especially for farmers. Although our atmosphere is full of nitrogen gas (N2), the bond between the two nitrogen atoms is so strong that the molecule is virtually inert. But life needs nitrogen to grow - in fact all life requires nitrogen to be pulled apart and react. Which is why we throw excesses of fertilizers (much of it petroleum derived), onto our fields and crops every year- to encourage growth.
In nature, legumes have been the typical model for how plants can 'fix' nitrogen. Soybean, peas, ground nuts, alfalfa, clover are all common plants that associate with bacteria in their root systems to 'fix' nitrogen. The symbiosis between these plants and bacteria allows them grow in nitrogen depleted areas, as well as have the potential to increase nitrogen content of the soil. The planting of legumes can even be used for ecological, or field restoration. But the legume crops studied have mostly been limited to temperate climates.
Now a new type of nitrogen fixing symbiotic relationship has been discovered with important potential for tropical and temperate agriculture, as well as reducing our excessive use of petroleum derived fertilizers. ...
More and more eco-hotels are opening up around the world, like the no frills eco-chic one (soon to be) in Montreal, the one planned for NYC or the Brando for holidays on a green paradise island. If you’re looking for eco accommodation in Europe, check out the Austrian BioHotels, promoters of the first bio hotel recognised by The European Community in Spain. This bio aparthotel is called Venus Albir and you can find it on the Costa Blanca. The main idea behind this tourist complex is the geo/bio construction which included building with local and natural materials such as thermal clay blocks, marble, cork insulation, ecological paints, wooden furniture, cotton sheets and latex mattresses. Solar panels to heat the water, rainwater collectors to water the plants and last but not least: the organic restaurant form part of this eco project. Prices vary depending on the season and lie between €47 and €80 for a double room, with special prices for families. For more information check out their web site, blog and videos where you can start with a virtual tour of the bio hotel. ::Venus Albir::via EcoHabitar...
What an eye Charley Harper had! And what style! Best known for his mid-century-modernist wildlife illustrations, which appeared in myriad books, magazines, posters, and prints, the Cincinnati-based artist most visibly plied his craft in the pages of The Golden Book of Biology (1962), as well as a series of posters for the U.S. National Park Service, the National Audubon Society, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and other nature-related organizations.
He passed away on June 10 after a long battle with pneumonia. :: Treadway Gallery and The Enquirer
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TreeHugger Forums are growing every day, adding great new content that helps us learn, share, discuss and push sustainability mainstream. Here are some of the highlights...
1) stevejust has some bad news to report: "Friday (the 13th) I was riding home, and I got creamed by a black 4-door sedan at the intersection of La Cienega and Clifton Way in Beverly Hills. The car took off. Witnesses said there's no way the car driver didn't know they hit me." Ouch. It's a jungle out there, steve. Not one to be easily discouraged, he says, "I think I'm going to keep riding my bike to work."
2) Even though it's the middle of summer, user laserninja is planning ahead: "Is a modern low emissions wood stove a good green heating source? Are any brands or models that are greener than any others?" Anyone wishing to weigh in on the lifecycle implications of wood vs. wood pellets vs. corn: this thread is for you!
3) Forum user afeather is expecting the pitter patter of little TreeHugger feet in November, and, after doing some homework, has decided that, when it comes to diapers, cloth is the way to go. Still, they "are getting lip from people who say the use of resources to produce and then clean them outweighs the production and disposal of the disposable. we dont have a dryer so its really just the electricty [sic] and water to run the washer. thoughts?" More good discussion after the jump...
TreeHugger recently found under our couch cushions 20 tickets for the Los Angeles screening of the upcoming movie Arctic Tale. Produced by National Geographic Films and Paramount Classic, Arctic Tale follows the story of a polar bear and a walrus growing up and trying to cope with a rapidly changing ecosystem. Head on over to arctictalemovie.com for the theatrical trailer, film synopsis, and to find ways you can get involved to help stop global warming. The Los Angeles screening is on Tuesday, July 24th at the ARCLIGHT in Hollywood. Unfortunately for you, we aren't nice enough to just give the tickets away, we are going to make you work for them. The first 10 people to complete the scavenger hunt at the end of this post will come away with a pair of tickets for the screening. Not in LA? You can sign up for a free screening near your home at arctictalemovie.com....
With growing international pressure to cut its overall greenhouse gas emissions, Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh announced on Friday that the government will take steps to developing a comprehensive national policy on climate change issues.
The declaration came after an inauguration meeting of Delhi’s National Council on Climate Change. The government’s aim is to lay the groundwork for a clear strategy in anticipation of an important United Nations climate change meeting in Bali in December, but without setting any specific emissions targets.
The goal of December’s summit is to hammer out an agreement that will replace the Kyoto Protocol, which lapses in 2012.
A national afforestation plan for 15 million acres will also be launched August 15th (though as TH reported last week, the government plans could involve leasing areas for reforestation to private interests in order to meet a growing demand for paper products)....
After tackling the issue of aquaculture a few weeks ago, Columbia University's Jeffrey Sachs is back to weigh in on one of his latest eco-initiatives: unleashing a green revolution in Africa by using the powers of risk management. Central to his essay is the argument that since life in poor, developing African nations is often fraught with considerable risk (households lacking health insurance, diversified income revenues and crop failure insurance, amongst others), farmers need to have the proper financial tools at their disposal to improve their odds and, hopefully, lives.
A simple disturbance, such as a temporary drought or disease (conditions that will likely worsen and become more frequent with the gradual onset of global warming), could be enough to knock an African household off its feet and into debt, or worse. Therefore, Sachs explains that proper risk management is critical to the farmers' well-being and their financial viability since it increases their creditworthiness and thus allows them to make investments in high-yield activities such as higher value-added farming (using fertilizer to plant their crops). Engaging in these activities greatly diminishes the likelihood that a farmer will fall into poverty. ...
Dee Williams wanted "a simpler life, time, more money. I don't have a mortgage. I don't have a big utility bill." So she built herself an 84 square foot house- "Not much to it. Simple. Small. A dream house tinier than a parking spot." Her monthly heating bill is $6 bucks and electricity is free from the solar panels.
Dee built the tiny cabin herself out of salvaged material. She picked the door out of a dumpster and retrieved the floors from a house fire. Dee's new tiny home sits in her friend's backyard.
To our eye it looks suspiciously like Jay Shafer's Tumbleweed Home but no credit is given in the article or video; . Nonetheless Dee is happy in her home. "Right now there's nowhere else I want to be!" Watch the video at ::Katu.com
UPDATE: As I said above, there was no reference on anything that I could find that said that Dee Williams was a customer of Tumbleweed Homes. As an architect I believe that credit to designers is important and wanted to make a point of it; knockoffs are rampant. The day I did the post I emailed Tumbleweed Homes, who I admire and have done a number of posts on, to confirm that she was a customer and never got a reply. Today I received an email accusing me of " biased, inept and/or skewed reporting." Biased I admit to: designers deserve credit. Skewed? perhaps. Inept? I tried and could find nothing. In the end unless someone gives credit where credit is due they deserved to be called on it. I support and promote designers like Jay Shafer and will continue to do so.
UPDATE 2: Tumbleweed Homes responded to my request saying "Dee actually did purchase her plans from Jay, and is one of his biggest fans. She also created her home with specialty green materials which she did on her own."
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We first met environmental artist Laurie Tumer while writing an article for Grist; plus we posted about her here. Not long ago, we dropped her a line, asking what’s new and she returned with this brilliant update on her experience at the last Ecological Farming Conference. Here is her guest post. Some of her new photography is posted for your viewing pleasure. All of her images are copyrighted, so please do not copy or use them in another forum without Laurie Tumer's permission.
The Ecological Farming Conference, now in its 27th year, is organized for the organic farming industry. I had the honor of being invited to be a presenter at this year’s conference, held at the Asilomar Conference Center near Monterey, California. Thomas Wittman, board member of the Ecological Farming Association, had seen an article about my photographic project Glowing Evidence, and asked me to show and speak about my still and holographic-like photographs that chart the invisible movement and settling of ubiquitous pesticides – those used on conventional farms and those that have found their way unwittingly into our homes and our bodies.
As the only artist among more than 150 speakers, I had a heightened sense of art’s history and ability to assist in our very survival: by dazzling, revealing, alerting, and enlightening.
It doesn't take a lot to get a house rated for Energy Star; it only has to be at least 15% more efficient than the standard 2004 Building Code (the minimum standard one can build to) and have other energy-saving features to bring them up to 20 to 30% more efficient. It is not a big deal.
But the EPA is patting itself on the back because last year 12% of houses qualified. "EPA is pleased to see builders in so many states leading the effort to offer their customers high-efficiency, low-emission choices in new homes."
So 88% of houses are built to a standard developed before anyone was thinking seriously about the 17% of greenhouse gases and 21% of energy consumption that comes from houses.
This is a scandal. Energy Star should be compulsory in every new house built in the United States and Canada right now. The customers get it back in better performance and lower utility bills; If the developers complain that this makes the prices higher and affects affordability, let them build smaller houses. 12% is an embarrassment, not something to be proud of. ::EPA via ::Green Wombat...
Burda style is a website dedicated to sewing clothing, techniques, patterns and how-tos. All you need to to do is download the patterns and follow the directions. Its a great resource for DIYers, Nikki, the powerhouse behind .... has a tutorial on how to turn men's old shirts into funky fitted shirts suitable for a woman's shape. TreeHugger previous posts on refashion includes t-shirts and sweaters::Burda style::Recycled shirt tutorial...
This week is Carnival of the Green # 86 and it's being hosted by The AIDG Blog (that's Appropriate Infrastructure Development Group). So, head on over to this week's Carnival to check out a round up of last week's green news and events, submitted by other bloggers and green sites. To learn more about Carnival of the Green, where it will be and how to host (hurry, we're now booking into 2008 and only have 25 dates left!), please click here to link to our previous post....
Swimming for the environment seems to becoming more fashionable these days. After British swimmer Lewis Gordon Pugh led the way yesterday with a 1 km swim across the frigid Arctic waters (-1.8°C) to raise awareness about climate change, former Lithuanian triathlete Vidmantas Urbonas is looking to call attention to the Baltic Sea's deteriorating condition by becoming the first person to swim across it.
His swim will begin on July 22 in Kalmar, Sweden, and will end in Pavilosta, Latvia, almost 130 miles away (209 km). It could last as long as 8 days, depending on the weather, or as little as 4-5 days if he chooses to swim non-stop. "I'm not doing it just to prove I can swim across the sea. With the swim I want to draw the attention of people around the sea to its condition, which is catastrophic," he said. He plans on splitting the swim into three separate legs: the first 7 km leg will take him from Kalmar to the island of Oland, the second 57 km leg will take him to Gotland, and the final 145 km leg will bring him to Pavilosta....
Like the Tong Lamp, the first thing we saw when looking at Ilaria Marelli's Fiocco "Chair" (it's more of a nest, really) was "Wow, that's cool. I'll bet I could make something like that." Like many of the things that catch TreeHugger's eye, it's "made with ageing and vanishing recycled material", meaning there's no reason you couldn't create your own from an excess of anything soft and cozy you have laying around or have ready access to (it looks like the gray half of this is made from carpet pads). ...
Those of you who spend part of your daily routines roaming the virtual landscapes in Second Life might find Second Chance Trees, an endeavor dedicated to supporting reforestation efforts, worth checking out. In essence, Second Chance Trees, a joint collaboration between the nonprofit organization Plant-It 2020 and the social media marketing group Converseon, manifests itself as an island in Second Life where you can buy and plant one of 10 species of endangered trees.
For the equivalent of 300 lindens (the in-game currency), or about $1.50, users can purchase and plant a tree on a designated virtual island in the game. At the same time, Plant-It 2020, which will receive all of the proceeds from the sale, will plant an equivalent tree in the particular endangered rain forest to which it is indigenous. "Our Second Chance Tree Project is an innovative way to allow individuals to immersively participate in a reforestation initiative by connecting their virtual world to a real world action," said Rob Key, CEO of Converseon....
Where we live the market has twice as many people, including well-dressed matrons who push to the front of the line and say "I want all of it!" Vendors who buy retail from other vendors who still have stock and resell at a higher price, because with the rich ladies moving in, price is irrelevant; what is important is to say "I bought it from a lovely farmer." Vendors who refuse to sell to rude and pushy people they have not seen before. A less satisfactory experience than it used to be.
Seth Godin says that the same thing is happening in New York:
"The market in my town is now twice as big as it was just last year. New vendors sell muffins, cookies, muffins, cheese, muffins, and yes, frozen risotto cakes in their own disposable plastic tray. Somewhere along the way, the farmer part got left behind.
This brings out tons of people, consumers who would rather buy a sandwich than a zucchini. It's the normal progression of things--from the edgy early adopter who seeks purity and novelty above all things, all the way through the early majority and then the mass market. As the market grows, it gets, by definition, more average. Until, as Yogi Berra says, "no one goes there, it's too crowded." more in ::Seth Godin...
Matt Beard, at a federal laboratory in Golden, Colo., is among scientists trying to cut solar energy costs.
The New York Times says that an hour’s worth of the sunlight bathing the planet held far more energy than humans worldwide could use in a year, and the first practical devices for converting light to electricity were designed more than half a century ago.
Andrew Revkin and Matthew Wald write: Yet research on solar power and methods for storing intermittent energy has long received less spending, both in the United States and in other industrialized countries, than energy options with more political support. In the United States, the Energy Department plans to spend $159 million on solar research and development. It will spend nearly double, $303 million, on nuclear energy research and development, and nearly triple, $427 million, on coal, as well as $167 million on other fossil fuel research and development.
In the battle for money from Washington, solar lobbyists say they are outgunned by their counterparts representing coal, corn and the atom. “Coal and nuclear count their lobbying budgets in the tens of millions,” said Rhone Resch, president of the Solar Energy Industries Association. “We count ours in the tens of thousands.”
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File this one under the "Wouldn't it be great in real life" section: designer Maxim Velcovsky's Factory Vase turns the iconic, industrial form of a power plant into an ironic, modern design. Instead of belching spent coal emissions from its smokestack, delicate, colorful flowers emerge, providing a timely, dramatic reminder of global warming in "an engaging and eye-catching form." To take the irony one step further, there was probably some coal-fired (or other "dirty" power source) power that went into firing the porcelain, unless Velcovsky has taken a page from Esque's book. The constant reminder that our world is persistently warming will set you back $99, at ::Generate via ::Freshome...
There is no doubt that cars offer a great deal of benefits, both to individuals and society, in terms of increased mobility and personal freedom. Having said that, anyone reading TreeHugger will also be keenly aware of the negatives, and we’re not just talking about greenhouse gases here. Urban sprawl, poor local air quality, drastically reduced road safety, increased noise, and the decreased walkability of our communities can all be traced back to excessive car use. Fortunately, people are beginning to think beyond their simple ‘cars good’, or ‘cars bad’ positions, and are seeking to find ways for society to enjoy the best of both worlds – the use of private cars when necessary, while still reducing overall traffic, noise and emissions. Approaches range from car clubs, to ride sharing, to promoting liveable, walkable neighborhoods. Now we’ve come across Carplus, a UK-based national charity promoting sustainable transport solutions and ‘responsible car use’. Carplus works to encourage and promote creative responses to current transport related problems:
“Carplus plays a unique bridging role between green transport organisations and the motoring lobby. Whilst recognising the benefits cars bring to society, Carplus is acutely aware of the financial, environmental, social and health costs of motoring today. Responsible car use embraces vehicle choice, alternative fuel technology, minimising car use, car clubs, car-sharing, improved driving behaviour, promoting journey planning, responsible disposal of cars, and all aspects of how we perceive and use the car.”
We love sheds, they have become a popular way to get a little privacy and extra space, and a great way for architects and designers to show their talents on small, affordable projects. Now there is an open Line of Sight competition to for the design of a shed of about fifty square feet, closing on August 3. It is a fun little competition with "Fabulous prizes" athough they are not specific, but given the sponsors, it could be from SONY or perhaps some Google stock. The organizers say "we're aiming to tickle those imaginative taste buds with a stimulating design challenge ... This, we hope, will occupy your mind as you strive to fill those balmy summer days (for those of us in the northern hemisphere) spent idling on the beach."...
For anyone who didn't get enough reading chair/book shelf mashup from last week's Bookinist, here's a slightly more overt combo. Bibiochaise and Bibiopouf come from Italian designers nobody & co eschew the reading light, notebook storage and pencil sharpener for straight-up shelves, storing "5 metres of books". We aren't sure how they measure books, but it's a cool, artful way to store your books, show off your collection, and always have them within arms reach. After the jump: the geometric, oddly naked, empty Bibliochaise. ::nobody & co via ::Shedworking...
And we thought movie popcorn was so expensive because the theater owners hosed us and sold us a bag worth three cents and a pop worth five cents for nine bucks because they could. Now we find out that the poor guys are crying in their Coke because ethanol is driving up corn prices. "I've never seen something quite like this," said American Pop Corn [maker of Jolly Time] president Garrett Smith, who's been in the business for three decades. He had to pay farmers almost 70 per cent more this spring than last year to grow his popcorn and has had to boost prices for movie theatre popcorn and jars of unpopped corn.
Mr. Smith is being walloped by higher soy prices as well, the second-biggest ingredient the company uses. Those prices have been rising too as farmers switch into corn crops. "It's a double whammy," he says. "It's a tough thing if you're trying to buy an alternative crop like we are." ::Globe and Mail
UPDATE: It's hitting our ice cream too! ...
(Picture: snow falls over the obelisk, in the center of Buenos Aires. From Clarin.) The last anniversary of Argentine independence, July 9th, came with a surprise: for the first time in almost 90 years, snow fell in Buenos Aires and the city’s suburbs. While mostly everybody was thrilled with the spectacle, we (and few media) wondered about how dangerous the phenomenon could be. Fortunately, local specialists explained this was an isolated phenomenon, but warned about the consequences of a changing climate. Argentine meteorologist Osvaldo Canziani, president of one of the sections in the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change (IPCC), explained to Clarin newspaper, “warming can produce cooling, but in this case it is not global warming the cause of this storm”. The specialist continued: “In September 1951 I worked in the international airport and we had a similar problem, of more intensity though it did not snow: a polar air mass from Antarctica invades the South of South America.......
"Imagine a day when you will go online and buy a pass to drive into any major urban area and the price of your pass will be set by whether you are driving a hybrid or a Hummer, the time of day you want to drive, the road you want to use and how much carbon your car trip will emit." That day is here in London and Stockholm and may be coming to New York, and Thomas Friedman loves the idea. "It is already proving to be the most effective short-term way to clean up polluted city air, promote energy efficiency and create more livable urban centers, while also providing mayors with unexpected new revenue." and lets the rich folk get to their offices faster while improving bus service for everyone else by keeping the riffraff off the roads.
He points out that Stockholm's system is built and run by IBM, and that the way to rebuild America's industrial sector is to create green collar jobs that are more difficult to outsource. "Which jobs are most easily outsourced? The ones vulnerable to cheap labor. Which jobs are hardest to outsource? Those that require a lot of knowledge." Worth reading (although a little bit too much green flagwaving, as is Friedman's wont) at the ::New York Times and read also Charles Komanoff in ::Grist....
Recently we learned that schools in parts of Canada were going to be focusing on the environment by incorporating it into the curriculum at every grade level. That was clearly great news, but I pointed out that an edict from on high can mean many things in a bureaucracy as vast and complex as a school system. The biggest challenge that I can see to that initiative will come from getting teachers to actually be able to integrate it in meaningful ways into the classrooms, especially when so many people are just becoming aware of the necessity of going green to begin with, teachers included.
And now there’s a study in Israel that shows huge gaps in that country between the declarations about the purpose and extent of environmental education and its actual implementation in the classroom. According to one of the study’s authors, Prof. Alon Tal, there are substantial gaps in knowledge among pupils concerning various environmental subjects, and they are not familiar with the most basic issues. The report's conclusions state that most local pupils have not been exposed to the subjects in question in a productive way. There are very few updated materials on ecological issues, and curricula rarely include a practical component like helping to improve the environment in the school vicinity. In questionnaires given to the student body, many answered only half or fewer of the questions correctly.
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"Nearly 3,000 Ohioans and about 500,000 other Americans are already employed by industries assembling or making parts for renewable-energy equipment such as wind turbines, solar panels and ethanol, economist Roger Bezdek reported in a comprehensive study released Thursday. It was commissioned by the [Solar] Society and the Ohio Department of Development. These industries recorded nearly $1 trillion in gross revenues in 2006, including about $51 billion in Ohio."
"The job and revenue numbers could skyrocket over the next 25 years - resulting in up to 2.2 million new jobs and $220 billion in annual revenues in Ohio and up to 40 million jobs and $4.5 trillion in revenues nationwide - if federal and state governments would make an all-out push for renewables and super-efficient products, the report argues."...
"Why is it prohibited? asked the savage....The controller shrugged his shoulders. "Because it is old, that's the chief reason. We haven't any use for old things here."
"Even when they are beautiful?"
"Particularly when they are beautiful. Beauty's attractive, and we don't want people attracted by old things. We want them to like new ones."
Giles Slade quotes Aldous Huxley from Brave New World's brilliant attack on consumerism, in "Made to Break": Technology and Obsolescence in America, about the design and marketing of goods to encourage their replacement. George Bush was not far off when asked what people should do after 9/11, he said "go shopping." -that has been the message in America since World War 1, when store keepers put up signs saying "Clear the Track for Prosperity." Building to last was counterproductive, as Henry Ford learned at great cost from General Motors, who introduced annual model changes and almost wiped him out. From its beginnings in shirt collars and razor blades, our disposable culture with rapidly changing styles and technology is creating a mountain of waste that will bury us.
Slade was asked by a reviewer at Grist: How do we undo this cycle of consumption? "A lot of really sophisticated people devoted a lot of time and thought to developing this system," he says. "We need to look at the problem creatively and rethink it. Our whole economy is based on buying, trashing, and buying again. We need to rethink industrial design." ...
The book that explains what motivates us to buy new things; It is perhaps a bit weak in the later sections about modern technology and computers in particular, but nobody can argue with his conclusion "The golden age of obsolescence -- the heyday of nylons, tailfins, and transistor radios -- will go the way of the buffalo." ::Made to Break...
A little while back TreeHugger posted news of the Greater Good campaign, a new initiative being spearheaded by natural body care pioneers Burt’s Bees. The idea behind the campaign is to clear up once and for all the fuzzy definitions of ‘natural’ when it comes to personal care products. The initiative is setting out to win support across the industry for a tighter definition of what can, and can not, be described as a natural product, and to raise awareness among consumers, both through education, and through the promotion of a recognized and regulated standard and corresponding seal that could go on all approved products. Given the importance of such an initiative, both to the industry, and to consumers, we thought we should get in touch with Burt’s Bees to find out more. The following interview with Mike Indursky, the company’s Chief Marketing Officer, sets out the reasoning behind the campaign, explores how companies across the industry are reacting, and discusses whether voluntary regulation is enough. We also get some more details of Mike’s views on the dangers of non-natural ingredients in personal care products, we hear a bit about Burt’s Bees wider sustainability agenda, and we even find out a little more about the mysterious Burt.
TreeHugger: In launching the Greater Good campaign, Burt's Bees is taking a very pro-active, even aggressive, stance on the issue of what can be defined as 'natural' when it comes to personal care. Why is this such an important issue for you, and for consumers in general? ...
TreeHugger has mentioned the concept of downloadable design many a time before, with good reason. It's a great way to localize product manufacturing and cut down the distance and time (and carbon footprint) of everything needs to get to you. Unfortunately, to this point, a lot of the downloadable designs have been pretty small and simple; because we're limited to printing on a flat piece of paper, it's tough to make something like a (full-size) chair or table. For everyone else who doesn't have a workshop of their own, there's Ponoko. The New Zealand-based company helps you upload your own digital design, find a local manufacturer to create it and then send it back to you. Burgeoning designers can also submit and then sell their designs to other Ponoko users, who then in turn have it manufactured locally to them. The system is still in beta, so we aren't sure how everything works, but it's a terrifically intriguing idea and seems to be a great way to put design within reach of everyone and give furniture design a little open-source twist. If you've got some designs ready to unleash on the world, sign up to help them test, check out some examples in their blog and stay tuned for more. ::Ponoko via ::Core77...
Sarah Hood makes use of real flowers, petals, magnolia leaves, eucalyptus and acorns and turns them into exquisite necklaces, bracelets and rings. The one pictured is made of sterling silver and chinese lantern pods, the most delicate of plants. Another necklace is made of acorns, hanging in a row, and capped with silver, also available as a bracelet. She makes a living ring with a little spider plant or cactus growing out of it. How they will all last and not rot or be crushed is another story. As an extra-special baby gift, there is a silver spoon (what else) with a handle cast from real garden vegetables and "Eat Your Vegetables" imprinted on the spoon part.
The designer is interested in how things decompose. She has "a desire to embrace the impermanence of the natural world around me. Rather than lamenting the transience of life, this jewelry celebrates it, transforming decay into beauty and lyricism, fragility into a strength of purpose." Hood is a Buddhist and the work is clearly influenced by the idea of the impermanence and the transiency of life as well as the importance of the moment. :: Sarah Hood Via :: Inhabitat...
Preferring non-toxic finishes and glues, natural rubber latex foam cushions, certified sustainable hardwoods and reclaimed woods, Chicago's Verde Design Studio starts with their name and makes it greener from there. Both starting from scratch and reclaiming and modernizing vintage furniture, the studio makes everything by hand, right there in Chicago. The current collection includes case goods, sofas (the "Gaylord" sofa is above), tables, chairs, rugs, wallcoverings and select vintage pieces, all with a sleek modern edge. Says designer Michele Fitzpatrick, "Just because something is renewable doesn't mean it's abundant," she says; as such, she avoids overused materials like the trendy, renewable-yet-not-abundant Macassar ebony wood. Verde also has plans to expand into the hospitality genre, with a new collection due out this summer. Stay tuned for more and hit the jump for more pics of their work. ::Verde Design Studio via ::Apartment Therapy: Chicago...
Kenny asked the question "would you rather see the family next door have 5 kids while behaving like the Corbets [a large but "model green" family] in every other way, or prefer to see them have just 2 kids of their own while spending like crazy and doing nothing else to reduce their environmental footprint?" and there was controversy in the comments.
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"Hoping to stabilize a $150 million annual electricity bill, Houston officials have negotiated a contract to ensure that a third of the city's power is generated by wind." If approved by the City Council, the contract would make Houston a renewable energy leader among cities.
"The mandate for wind as part of the annual 1.3 billion kilowatt hours needed to power city buildings, street lights and water plants comes from Mayor Bill White [pictured], who has made energy conservation a theme of his tenure."
""It puts us in a definite leadership position," said White, a former chief operating officer at the U.S. Department of Energy during the Clinton administration. "We are ahead of the curve."" (And ahead of the Federal Government we might add.) "The mayor sought the changes after hurricanes Katrina and Rita disrupted the production and delivery of natural gas — a common fuel at Texas power plants — prompting electricity prices to soar."
Via: Houston Chronicle Image credit:: Mayor Bill White in biking spandex gear, Lone Star Times...
Opposition to national mandates requiring energy utilities to move towards using cleaner renewable energy have typically come from two quarters: said energy utilities and a predictable group of Southern legislators. When you consider that 6 of the country's 10 largest emitters of carbon dioxide are coal-fired power plants in southern states, this all begins to make a bit more sense.
A coalition of southern Republican senators contributed about half the votes necessary to kill a bill that would've required utilities to obtain 15% of their electricity from renewable energy sources by 2020. They've tried to defend their position by claiming that the South, unlike the West and Southwest, is not amenable to solar or wind power. Because these senators have continued to drag their feet and, in so doing, brought the Congress to a virtual standstill on national clean energy legislation, many states have taken the lead in adopting their own mandates (almost half to date). One notable exception: Texas. ...
Back in January Jeff posted on the commitment made by Abbott Labs, a large, US-headquartered company, to green its corporate fleet. Nice move Abbott. Half way through 2007, the overall corporate stage setting changed dramatically, with prominent climate skeptics increasingly ignored by the media. Even better news: more US corporations started strutting their green stuff, some even hiring VP's of Sustainability, and the like, to lead the way on climate policy and green design.
Continuing with our example of this trend:- Abbott Labs as described in a recent press release, has finished greening its fleet to "carbon neutrality" and is taking on new green challenges:- "ABBOTT PARK, Ill. - July 11, 2007 — Abbott, the global health care company, announced today that it is the first FORTUNE 500 company to go "carbon neutral" with its entire U.S. fleet of company sales vehicles. At an environmental summit today in Chicago, Abbott also unveiled its new Global Energy Policy and announced the installation of a large, 500-kilowatt hour solar power system to produce electricity for parts of a manufacturing plant in southern California." Details below....
As we've continually tried to show you on TreeHugger, taking the necessary steps to conserve energy doesn't have to be an arduous, expensive ordeal. In fact, quite the contrary: it can be a cheap (or even free), rewarding and ultimately enlightening experience.
Now that we are in the midst of the dog days of summer and hitting record highs in several parts of the country, saving energy on cooling has become more important than ever. Fortunately, the fine folks at Flex Your Power have just released a comprehensive list of mostly cheap and free energy saving tips that should go a long ways towards making your summer a bit more bearable (and lighter on the wallet). Some highlights after the jump....
It used to be that filling up one's gas tank with waste vegetable oil was considered a very niche, potentially costly, practice. INOV8, a company based in La Crosse, Wisconsin, is aiming to change that perception and bring vegetable oil a little bit more into the mainstream by opening up one of the first recycling and filling stations in the Midwest.
Though vegetable oil is already widely used in several countries, most prominently in Germany, it has only recently begun to make headway in the United States' burgeoning alternative fuels market. This is mainly due to the fact that the U.S. lacks the necessary infrastructure to make vegetable oil a sufficiently plentiful and viable source of renewable energy. "We've been encouraging people to convert to vegetable oil, and when they've asked about fuel availability, we've said, well, get ready to go Dumpster-diving," said Taavi McMahon, a lawyer and the president of a biofuels cooperative in Madison....
Is Mackey too wacky to be CEO of Whole Foods?—that's the question the media is trotting out in the wake of the Wall Street Journal's recent disclosure that John P. Mackey has couched behind an online alter ego for the past seven years.
Using the handle "Rahodeb," an anagram of his wife Deborah's name, the vegan, organic-food-loving co-founder of the largest natural-foods chain typed out a voluminous 1,100-plus entries on Yahoo Finance's bulletin board, playing cheerleader to his own company, while occasionally skewering its rival, Wild Oats Markets, which Whole Foods is currently in the process of acquiring.
Was Mackey simply employing standard Machiavellian business practices or is he just plain quackers?...
Like other eco-topics -- climate change, species endangerment, ocean ecosystem collapse -- Peak Oil has had it's share of detractors. Some cite Russian research claiming a geological mechanism is replenishing stores. Others contend that our supplies are so vast that they might as well be infinite. Regardless of their camp, skeptics of the peak oil concept have had to draw from a shrinking pool of watchdog groups for studies which matched their assertions.
Last week, that pool got a whole lot smaller, as the International Energy Agency, a major international petroleum market assessment group released their "Medium Term Oil Market Report"....
Sainsbury’s, the major UK supermarket chain, have not got too much coverage on TreeHugger so far, at least compared to their arch-rivals Tesco. Sure, we’ve covered their range of artist-designed reusable bags before, and their one day ban on plastic bags also got them some headlines. However, a quick search of our archives suggests that their goal of achieving 25% cuts in CO2 emissions by 2012 has yet to be covered by us. So far, highlights of this program have included a conversion to FSC certified sources for non-recycled own brand paper products, and a conversion of a fifth of the company’s online delivery fleet to electric vehicles.
Perhaps the most intriguing development in Sainsbury’s attempts to go green is their recent trial of using barges on the river Thames to deliver goods to central London stores [N.B. The picture above is not of the store in question. It does prove they have stores by canals though]. Apparently the intiative could save as many as 350,000 kilometers worth of truck journeys per years, were it to be rolled out as standard practice for the company’s London stores. It doesn’t end there, however, as the supermarket is also experimenting with delivering Scottish mineral water and Italian wine by rail. ::Sainsbury’s:: via The Globe and Mail::
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No streetfront garages, there is a back lane system
Jacob described the plans for Canada's greenest suburb, Drake Landing, last year. It is in Okotoks, a half hour south of that Radiant City, Calgary. Now it is built and while it looks a little barren without the trees in, Patrick White of the Globe and Mail visited it and was impressed. he writes:
Drake Landing sold out soon after construction was announced in 2005, with buyers coming from as far away as Seattle and Quebec. The homes were originally slated to sell for less than $300,000, but with the Okotoks real-estate market booming, the new homes are being resold for closer to half a million dollars.
They have attracted a few dozen families whose ecological orientation binds residents more than neighbours in most suburbs. On a recent weekday afternoon, neighbours chatted over their fences, swapping tips on tweaking home furnaces for efficiency, and xeriscaping, a landscaping method that minimizes water use.
"There's definitely an us-versus-the-world mentality here," says Maria Cameron, a stay-at-home mom. "We're all a little different here."...
The start of a new Sunday series where we dig into the archives.
Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose. Trolling two year old archives is surprising for how many posts cover Exxon, modern prefab, solar messenger bags and yes, organic T's.
Yet much has changed. I have not put a tiger in my tank in two years, and like so many others, I have gone gaga over the hundred mile diet. Two years ago Mike did our very first post on it, coverage of their first article in The Tyee....
There are few things more beautiful than a well lit garden at night time. Unfortunately, design-conscious gardeners have had a difficult choice to make. Hard wired garden lamps can be beautiful, but installation is expensive, and the incandescent bulbs they use often burn through serious energy. On the other hand, solar/LED lamps are cheap, and power themselves, but the style choices look like something out of an in-flight magazine. Faux verdigris painted plastic? No thanks. ...
Cards can be a beautiful way to commemorate everything from a birthday to a book deal, but they're as transient as gifts come; unless its hand-painted, a card rarely sees more than a month on display before it hits the trash. These Bloom and Grow cards from UncommonGoods are designed with this short lifetime in mind, and in true cradle-to-cradle spirit, feed the earth once they're discarded. Seeds are embedded in each card, and with a little patience and water, will bloom into healthy flowers after the card is buried. While building an entire garden from these cards might only be possible for the super-popular, they're perfect for anyone who will actually take the time to make the seeds sprout. I only wish there was an option to send local seeds- perhaps you could choose varsities based on the recipient's climate region.
Disclaimer: I was employed by UncommonGoods in 2006...
Check out recycled rings jewellery range, gorgeous and original, totally planet friendly and without the internal conflict that comes with wearing diamonds and other mined gemstones. Other conflict free jewellery includes the GreenKarat and Liana Kabels designs. We love this anti-diamond ring, the envy ring and the best friend ring, each ring is reconstructed from found jewelry and hand sewn/embroidered and embellished. ::recycled rings ::via modish and CRAFTzine. ...
It's really quite amazing to see how far the green world has come in just a year. To wit, one year ago on TreeHugger, we were just becoming acquainted with the Tesla Roadster and Robert Redford was just announcing the new green ambitions of the Sundance Channel; since then, the roadster has been all over the news and Sundance is already working on Season Two of the Green television programming. Not everything has been quite so widely accepted, though; we're happy to say that the "smart" conversion to the "ForFun" has not caught on with the same level of popularity.
In addition, last July 21 also saw TreeHuggerTV at Bonnaroo, biodiesel made from leftover catfish guts and bioplastics made from cow poo. We peeked at the GoBike, another snazzy folding bike, accessorized with this wind-powered bike light gazed way out at a deepwater wind farm slated for construction in Scotland. We even found time to put out a call for more Honorary TreeHuggers. Hit the jump to see the full list of entries from last year....
Finally after all these years I might get a picture up on Cute Overload. I mean, who could resist those baleful eyes staring at you, making you ask "how much is that discarded Japanese kitchenware (spoons, kettles, cups etc) recycled into that doggie in the window?" ...
We spied Sugar the Treats Truck, which we've covered before, next to the Barnes & Noble on 23rd and 6th.
The Red Hook, Brooklyn-based mobile retail bakery runs on compressed natural gas (CNG), which produces less exhaust and carbon emissions than diesel and gasoline do. While actual emissions will vary with engine design, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that compared with gasoline, CNG offers potential reductions in carbon-monoxide emissions of 90 to 97 percent, as well as reductions in carbon-dioxide emissions by 25 percent. ...
We will most likely see larger than previously expected increases in sea levels over the next century according to a recent study conducted by a team of researchers from the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research at the University of Colorado, Boulder. They anticipate that the global warming-induced melting of mountain glaciers and ice caps will account for the brunt of that rise, as much as 2-3 times more than the amount originally predicted.
The scientists used satellite monitoring to determine the contribution of all land-based ice (except for Greenland and Antarctica's huge ice sheets) to rising sea levels and found that the volume of ice melting into the sea each year from ice caps and glaciers was 100 cubic miles (or 417 cubic km). They determined, however, that this volume had now increased by a further 3 cubic miles each year, prompted by an acceleration in the rate at which the ice caps and glaciers are melting....
Here's one diet plan even you assiduous fad followers have probably never heard about: the "Paleolithic" diet. As the name implies, this diet essentially consists of foods that were regularly consumed by our Stone Age forbears and includes such staples as root vegetables, lean meat, nuts and eggs. Perhaps not surprisingly, given its simplicity and variety, this diet was found to yield significant health benefits in a recent study conducted in Sweden.
Staffan Lindeberg, a physician at Lund University, found that Swedish men with diabetes exhibited a large drop in their blood sugar levels after just 3 months on the "Paleolithic" diet. Of the 29 test subjects with diabetic conditions and heart disease, 14 had their blood sugar return to normal and their glucose tolerance improve by 26% while the rest, whose diet also included dairy products and grains, showed only a 7% improvement in glucose tolerance....
There is often debate about which is greener, washing dishes by hand or with a dishwasher? The discussion will probably end when Bosch's new ultrasonic dishwasher goes on sale. The Patent application claims "A dishwasher machine (1), in particular a domestic dishwasher machine, is described, comprising a washing container (2) and devices for washing items to be washed by means of washing solution, as well as a sound wave generator (5), wherein the sound wave generator (5) is used to generate a sound wave which at least assists the drying process of the items to be washed. In order to achieve the highest possible efficiency of the drying process, the sound wave generator (5) is designed to deliver sound waves of different frequency and/or amplitude."
The New Scientist notes that : "The conventional method is to heat the dishes while they are being washed. The dishes retain thermal energy, which heats any leftover water so that it evaporates quickly once the wash is over.
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Conflict Disclosure: Until recently my day job was working with Royal Homes to promote modern prefab. We commissioned Kohn Shnier Architects to design the small and efficient Q series, which was seen by a Toronto patron of the Arts, who asked for a larger version as a second home for two families in Muskoka, Ontario. I visited the site this week for the first time since the construction and installation, which can be seen here. Another disclosure: I am a terrible photographer and these pictures do not do it justice.
The building is essentially a sixteen foot deep wall; that the maximum width that can go down the road, and Martin Kohn took advantage of this to create the thin, long structure....
The UK government has approved a new scheme for desalination of water from the Thames, for use in London. The £200 million plant will be built in Beckton, east London. It's not a popular plan, though, among environmental campaigners. We've written before about how energy-intensive desalination is and how it can contribute to climate change, and recent plans for a similar plant in Australia came under attack for the same reason.
However, some concessions have been made. The planning authority only approved the scheme if renewable energy sources were used to power the plant, and if the plant only operates during periods of drought. A more cynical reporter could mention that it is still using power that could be used elsewhere, and that 'periods of drought' cover much of the year currently anyway. Once built, these rules could be stretched.
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Music festivals will always have a huge impact on the environment, it's inevitable. Tens of thousands of people all traveling from all over the country is bad news for a start, before you even take into account the huge energy requirements and massive amounts of waste. However, some are making a good attempt at minimizing their impact - I attended Latitude festival last weekend, and I was impressed by the amount of thought that went into it.
It was easy to get there on public transport. I traveled to the nearest train station, and there were regular shuttle buses to the venue. This cut down on the number of people who drove to the festival significantly. If you absolutely had to drive, then you could use the festivals own lift-share scheme to make sure that your car was filled up. You could also cycle to the event, with secure bike racks being made available, although I doubt I could have made it with my tent....
GoinGreen is the London-based company behind the success of the quirky-looking, but increasingly popular, G-Wiz electric car. As we saw in our interview with GoinGreen Managing Director Keith Johnston here and here, the company has followed a radically different model compared to the average car dealership, using viral marketing techniques, and refusing to invest in either advertising or showrooms.
Looking at the news section of the company’s website (and the streets of London), it seems that this approach may be paying off. May and June were apparently record months for deliveries of the G-Wiz, with over 150 vehicles hitting the streets in these two months alone. While these number would be pitiful for any regular car dealership, GoinGreen’s low-overheads approach is allowing them to slowly but surely increase their sales of a radically different product. The cars popularity is being helped by celebrity endorsements - Jerry Hall has just become a proud owner, and TV presenter Jonathan Ross has just taken delivery of his second G-Wiz. For the first time since the car began being marketed in London, the company is claiming that there is currently no wait for one of these efficient, nippy town cars. It looks like the G-Wiz virus may be in danger of becoming an epidemic. ::GoinGreen:: via site visit::
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The Italian government has made an official request that businesses loosen up on the dress code during hot summer months. A statement from the ministry claims that, "Taking your tie off immediately lowers the body temperature by 2 to 3 degrees Celsius. Allowing a more sensible use of air conditioning that yields electricity savings and protects the environment.”
While this may not seem a significant message outside of Italy, by relating dress style to global warming the Italian government may have found a way to get the attention of a blasé public. One of the European Union’s most polluted members, Italy, in spite of various efforts to reduce emissions, is expected to exceed greenhouse gas emission targets. Perhaps by encouraging shabby dress in the workplace the government has tapped a nerve that will lead to other, more significant changes.
At least one tie-maker on the other hand is not impressed with the government’s anti-tie message. Reuters quotes from a letter to the newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore: "Italy confirms that it is a strange country," said Flavio Cima "I, tie maker, am responsible for global warming. We can now happily continue with our lifestyle, using cars, consuming fuel, heating and cooling our homes at leisure. On one condition: we should not wear a tie while we do so." Via ::Yahoo News
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US Organic food sales were still growing rapidly in 2006 (3% of total food & beverage sales), but have not yet reached the market share already achieved in Europe (7-10% of total).
"U.S. organic food sales totaled nearly $17 billion in 2006, up 22 percent over the previous year, according to preliminary findings from the Organic Trade Association's 2007 Manufacturers Survey. In the U.S., organic foods' share of total retail sales of food and beverages was up to about 3 percent, up from 1.9 percent in 2003 and approximately 2.5 percent in 2005."
"About 31 percent of overall organic sales in 2006 were through mainstream supermarkets/grocery stores, and 24 percent were through the leading natural food supermarket chains such as Whole Foods, Wild Oats, and Trader Joe's, according to the OCA."...
One more tale of romancing the coal. In addition to the one Lloyd posted, and the Abbott Laboratories story, recently written.
"Railroad operator CSX Corp. paid McGlotten & Jarvis $40,000 in the first half of 2007 to lobby the federal government, according to a disclosure form. The firm lobbied on legislation related to global warming and railroad security issues, according to the form posted online Tuesday by the Senate's public records office."
"In March, CSX said it was the first railroad company to join a federal program to set voluntary targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions. But the company, which is a major shipper of coal, is also among a number of railroad operators that is spending money to upgrade the nation's coal transportation network since coal accounts for about one-fifth - or $11 billion in 2006 - of the industry's revenue."
"In that regard, the railroad industry has joined mining and utility companies in touting the benefits of coal, which produces about half the nation's electricity. However, coal also produces more carbon dioxide - a contributor to global warming - than other fossil fuels."...
You could win a new Opel by driving with the least fuel over a 20km stretch in an Opel Corsa 1.3 CDTI, Astra 1.3 CDTI or a Vectra 1.9 CDTI. The contest is going on through 25 August at Opel dealers throughout Germany. The most fuel-efficient driver in each of the three models from each dealer will qualify for to win one of 50 eco-efficient Opel automobiles. Presumably Opel will have the cars set up with optimal tire pressure, topped up with light oil and carrying a tire repair kit rather than a spare, following their own fuel-saving tips (German). Drivers are advised to plan your trip to avoid stop-and-go or jammed traffic, look ahead to minimize braking, shift early to keep rpms low, and stay in gear rather than roll towards stoplights. Don't be afraid to turn the engine entirely off even for standing times as little as 3 mintues. And, of course, don't even think about switching the air conditioning on. ...
If the launch of Apple's iPhone a few weeks ago proved anything, it was that many of us still have an insatiable thirst for sleek, shiny and high tech devices and are more than willing to pay top billing for them. Recent consumer spending patterns in the home entertainment/theater areas have only reinforced this trend, with sales of plasma TVs, set-top boxes and DVDs continuing to soar.
Yet, according to tech writer Mark Fleishmann, this age of high tech excess may soon be winding down. Why? Peak oil, as he sees it, would be the main culprit. Having already discussed this topic at length in the past, you'll no doubt already be familiar with most of the points he lays out: the price of oil has risen to $71 in the wake of increased demand and reduced supplies, it follows a classic bell curve (easy to extract oil as the curve goes up, at the top reach peak oil, harder to extract oil as curve descends), etc. ...
Another alternative to harmful, chemically-dependent agriculture is cropping up in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh (UP) and remarkably, it involves the use of homoeopathic concoctions to keep plants healthy.
While homoeopathy has demonstrated benefit when used on human beings, it now appears that it has the same effect on plant life as well. Over local 400 farmers have switched from soil-degrading chemicals to homoeopathic solutions and according to a government-appointed research group, their potato harvests have shown a longer shelf-life, in addition to an apparent increase in yield....
The new UK Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, was depicted as the 'Great Plane Robber' in a series of Ryanair adverts which have been pulled out of circulation. Brown increased air passenger duty, apparently to reduce the impact of aviation on the environment, although Ryanair obviously were implying that it was instead motivated by profit. They claimed that the government would make more than £1bn from the increase and that they didn't plan to invest any of the revenue into environmental projects.
The Advertising Standards Authority received a total of 48 complaints, most relating to Ryanair's claim that, "aviation accounts for just 2% of CO2 emissions". These claims were found to be unreliable and without basis, so the adverts were pulled. The authority also disagreed with Ryanair's claim that none of the tax revenue would be used in environmental projects. The government said that some of the money would go towards, "environmental measures and in increasing public transport". ...
We're completely downward dog with aGaIN NYC's hip, one-of-a-kind yoga bags. Made from repurposed fabric and a contrasting vintage men's tie, each $45 bag also features a small zippered pocket perfect for stashing loose change and your Metro card, so you can stretch, flex, and meditate unburdened. Slip in a standard-size yoga mat and secure with the drawstring closure.
More styles below the fold. :: aGaiN NYC
See also: :: Eco Mats by Eco Yoga, :: The Harmony Natural Rubber Yoga Mat, :: Organic Cotton Yoga Rugs, and :: Cleaning Your Yoga Mat, Naturally
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Apartment therapy is running such a TreeHugger type survey that we thought that we would just steal it. They are writing from a "parlor-floor apartment in an old massive-walled brick building stays cool with the use of a ceiling fan"- staying cool in the City has its own issues and solutions. They note: "Lots of people use an air conditioner. Lots of others don't, out of environmental concerns, discomfort, or to keep the power bill down." They also point to a very useful guide from RealSimple: 23 ways to beat the heat.
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A team of researchers at Harvard University have created a life-size, robotic fly that they say has potential applications in spying as well as for detecting noxious chemicals. To build such a tiny robot, with a wingspan of only 3 cm and a weight of 60 milligrams, they developed a new fabrication process that consisted of using laser micromachining to slice thin sheets of carbon fiber and arranging them into functional parts.
They also incorporated electroactive polymers, which can change shape upon being exposed to voltage, into the parts to make them responsive to electrical signals. "Nature makes the world's best fliers," said Robert Wood, the project's leader and a professor at Harvard University's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences....
We do so many posts about China; its problems shouldn't be surprising since we outsourced our pollution and greenhouse gas emissions along with our manufacturing jobs, but who is running the show? Business Week asks: 
In its latest issue, Popular Science champions genetic and geo-engineering as strategies to mitigate the effects of climate change on the planet and save the environment in a series of articles collectively referred to as "Duct Tape Methods to Save the Earth." The proposed schemes range from a plan to use huge blankets to wrap thawing glaciers in the Alps to using genetically modified tree plantations to replace thinning rainforests.
We've often been skeptical of the feasibility and long-term viability of geo-engineering in the past and certainly aren't big fans of genetic engineering. Having said that, we thought several of these schemes worth mentioning, were it not only for their sheer creativity, since similar ideas may very well be implemented in the near future as a series of quick fixes to our deteriorating environment (though the jury is still out on their potential for sucess)....
Interior designer and fashion stylist Scott Newkirk loved the 1973 eco-classic Handmade Houses: A Guide to the Woodbutcher’s Art and decided to build a 300 square foot off-grid cabin in the woods. It took two years to build; being a New York designer, it's not quite handmade and he "had a hard time finding builders who got his idea for a simple, rough-hewn look."-silly builders, they try to make it look finished.
It's small, it's built from salvaged and reclaimed materials and it's pretty basic. Nice.
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Core77 points us to a great essay by designer Khoi Vinh about the relationship between planned obsolescence -- the idea that objects are designed with a specific lifetime in mind -- and "designed deterioration" -- the very TreeHugger idea that we should be designing objects that actually improve with age. Held up as examples are digital hardware (like the iPhone) vs. a cast-iron pan. 
Photo credit: Peter Prehn
It'd be easier for Judy Steele to grow cannabis in her garden in Warwickshire, England, than it'd be to plant Carruther's Purple Podded peas, Auntie Madge's tomato, or Mr. Stiff's bunching onion. In fact, it's illegal to buy seeds of this old variety. But Steele, who is growing a row of those peas anyway, is hardly a criminal or some kind of botanical terrorist—the self-described "foster mother for orphaned pea varieties" is one of 300 seed guardians for Garden Organic, formerly known as the Henry Doubleday Research Association, based at Ryton, near Coventry.
Garden Organic's extensive seed library contains 800 traditional vegetable varieties once grown in Britain but are now outlawed by European legislation. How did society reach the point that growing food became a criminal move? Or an act of subversion?...
It's getting close to Solar Decathlon time, when TreeHugger is filled with green architectural wonders from the twenty entries in this competition sponsored by the U.S Department of Energy to "design, build, and operate the most attractive and energy-efficient solar-powered home."
First up is the University of Illinois, which is "meant to be a display to people that being comfortable and conserving energy aren’t two different things, that we can build a house that requires only 10 percent of the energy a typical house today requires, build it with today’s technologies and show that it saves money.”...
With the promise of reduced costs and increased efficiency, the virtualization rage continues in the techno-sphere. The basic premise of virtualization is to make one server do the work of many; this increases utilization, and hence requires less servers. Fewer servers mean less power, which in turn means less CO2, thus saving the planet. Simple.
But now there's a counterpoint; "yes, you have fewer servers in a virtualized environment, but each one of those servers is more heavily utilized, and because they are doing more work their power consumption goes up. The net gain is zero." Can that be? When we interviewed Foedus, they claimed one could get up to a 20 to 1 reduction in hardware using virtualization; it's hard to believe that doesn't more than make up for the extra power. Quocirca did their own analysis and came to the same conclusion. On the other hand, when we interviewed John Engates of Rackspace, he agreed that the power to run the heavier-laden box beats the costs of buying it - the juice beats the iron.
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One of the forerunners of eco-fashion in the States, Indigenous Designs, has been highlighted in the Wall Street Journal this week, not for their environmental sense, but for their business sense. With over ten years of success behind them Indigenous Designs are continuing to grow and expand into new markets, proving that ethical fashion and commercial success are not mutually exclusive. This September their clothes will be stocked in Dillards department stores and according to co-founder Scott Leonard this year the company's revenue is expected to double to more than $4 million from $2 million last year. He goes on to say that the number of individual stores stocking Indigenous Designs clothing has jumped 75% in the past 18 months. Is this success due purely to the ethical nature of the brand?...
Renovation is the greenest way to build, but so often our older buildings are left to rot and collapse. Toronto's 1850 era Walnut Hall was designated as historic ten years ago, but was left empty and exposed until bricks started falling off it and the City demolished it. The owner quoted Captain Renaud from Casablanca: "We're shocked, we're quite disturbed by the whole thing." Chris Hume notes in The Star that "heritage preservation is a crucial aspect of metropolitan civilization" but in Toronto and most of North America, "nothing should be allowed to interfere with the rights of property owners, even when they are yahoos who would wreck a unique and valuable site to make a buck."
Catherine Nasmith of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario is disgusted.
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With great concern for the birds, TreeHugger has posted a series of articles on the problems of wind turbines and bird flyways. We sent a post to one of our favorite green groups - The Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) - and were surprised to learn that Israeli ornithologists are involved in monitoring wind turbines and bird migration. One of their conclusions is that perhaps Israel should not operate wind farms at all.
Writes Michelle Levine from the SPNI:
Designer Chris Kirby wants us all to compost. Believing that "if we are to value food waste, then we should treat it with importance," he created the Compost Vase, an artful, dare we say, sexy (oh, we dare!) accoutrement for composting. Says Kirby, "Made from porcelain, I wanted the compost vase to be a treasured object dedicated to the reclaimation of food wastes. The compost vase introduces ritual into food waste collection. During meal preparation, it lays flat to receive trimmings from the cutting board. At mealtime, it sits on its side as a reinterpretation of the Victorian 'bone dish'. Upright, it is a vase for display." Once you get the basics of compost down, this could be an easy way to make it a bit more fun. The design was one of "10 highly commended entries" in designboom's "ceramics for breakfast" design contest; learn more about Chris at his website and check out more pics beneath the fold. ::Chris Kirby Design's Compost Vase via ::designboom...
Image: Photograph: Wuhan/AP
"Wuhan, Hebei province: A man collects dead fish in Donghu lake, where officials say an estimated 30,000kg of fish have been killed by a combination of pollution and hot weather".
::The Guardian
More after the jump......
For many of us, nothing says summer like a dinner from the grill. The taste of marinated flank steak, barbecued chicken and fresh veggies is so yummy when it comes off the Weber, not to mention the cleanup is a quick one so we can enjoy the warm nights. But have you thought about the impact on our environment that may come from grilling? Last year, Lloyd gave you some tips on how to grill greener and we’re bringing you even more with the “P’s and Q’s of BBQ” from the Sierra Club. While your backyard barbie alone isn’t going ruin the environment, the Sierra Club notes that 60 million of us fire up the grill over holidays like Memorial Day, July 4th and Labor Day. They also say that “Three out of four U.S. households own at least one barbecue grill. Among grill owners, 48 percent fire up with charcoal, 61 percent with propane, and 7 percent with electricity.” We understand the love for a charcoal grill so if that’s the way you choose to go, check out companies like Wicked Good Charcoal that produce charcoal that is 100% natural. ::”P’s and Q’s of BBQ” from the Sierra Club Also see: “Get Your Grill On” from the Sierra Club...
TreeHugger has teamed up with Instructables and Popular Science to bring you the Go Green! contest. We want to know how you're reducing your environmental footprint, and hopefully saving some cash in the process. Are you modding your gear, simplifying your life, or building something awesome? Tell us what you're doing to go green, and teach us how -- share what you know! Whether you're making your own microwavable mitten warmers, building a 1000 Watt wind turbine, stitching up a cloth grocery bag or hammering together some recycled modular shelving, this is all about DIY ingenuity and making the most of what we've got. So, reduce, reuse, repurpose, recycle, and rebuild, then show us what you are doing to make your life a little bit greener! Need more ideas? Hit up our guides for How to Go Green or check out PopSci's green coverage.
The deadline for entries is August 19, 2007 (get all the details here) and the judging panel will include head TreeHuggers Graham Hill and Ken Rother and Voltaic Systems CEO Shayne McQuade (who is also a member of TreeHugger's Board of Advisors). The grand prize winner will receive a Breezer Liberty hybrid commuter bicycle with pedal-powered lights, a brief write-up in a future issue of Popular Science, and a 1-year subscription to Popular Science magazine. Good luck! All the details are at ::Instructables...
The UK shed scene is so creative; so many designers are offering holiday homes, caravans and sheds that one could devote an entire website to them. (hey, someone did!) Philip Simpson "wanted something that would enhance the user's appreciation of the outdoors, from both inside and out." and sketched up the Orb (on backs of envelopes and restaurant napkins, of course.) Architect David Miller and interior design consultancy Real Studios polished it off.
"Its unique oval shape and generous glazing provide a luxurious sense of space and light, as well as intrinsic strength, flexibility, sustainability and superb insulation efficiency."
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The problem of toxic electronic waste is no longer a dirty little secret. Thanks to relentless efforts of consumer advocacy groups, photojournalists -- and, we like to think, little old blogs like us -- the computer industry is starting to take notice. Obvious first steps like the elimination of lead, and reduction of fire retardants, and institution of recycling programs are being rolled out all across the industry. But the holy grail of recycling, product take-back, still hadn't been tackled, until now. Newcomer Zonbu recently introduced its Zonbox home networking PC, and one of the coolest features is one you don't get to use until it breaks....
While the tragedy of the exploding New York City steam pipe is still on the news, this would be a good time to point out an example of the environmental benefits of below-ground urban steam use. Back in May it was reported that in the City of Duluth Minnesota, [USA] "crews were pumping insulation into the conduits that cradle Duluth's network of steam pipes." The Duluth cooperative steam plant delivers steam via underground pipes to more than 225 buildings in Canal Park and downtown Duluth, and demand for its steam heat is growing. For the future:- "Following a $1 million investment in equipment, the facility probably could generate about 1 megawatt of power with the steam it currently produces. "
"It's part of a $4.2 million initiative to improve the efficiency of the city's steam works. The project will involve updating coal pulverizers, installing new boiler controls, wrapping valves and expansion joints with insulation blankets, repairing the team plant's smokestack and replacing its coal conveyance system. When all the work is done, analysts predict the city steam plant will be able to cut its diet of coal by 17 percent, said Jerry Pelofske, manager of the Duluth Steam Cooperative Association. Pelofske believes there's plenty of life left in the plant, which will mark its 75th birthday this year."...
UK solar company Solarcentury is one of those companies that just keeps on cropping up on TreeHugger. Most recently we’ve covered their work to get part-funded solar panels to schools, and their collaboration with Barclaycard to even provide them free for a select few learning establishments. We’ve also written about their expansion to Spain, and once upon a time we even interviewed Jeremy Leggett, the company’s CEO, who also happens to be a leading peak oil expert and former oil man. Now we see from Solarcentury’s website that, for a limited period of time, they are offering lucky customers the chance to get 50% more capacity on solar installations free of charge:
Providing healthy lunches for school children has been an on-going debate and dilemma in Britain. Jamie Oliver waded into the fray and managed to get the government to up its standards, whilst being pilloried by some mothers who sold chocolate bars to the deprived students through the fences. Students in one third of all secondary schools have rejected healthy school lunches, preferring french fries. But 80% of all elementary schools report that the adoption of school lunches has improved. Of course the little ones don't have any choice, but with food being provided by the likes of the Duke of Cambridge pub, they can consider themselves lucky.
The pub, the first organic gastro-pub in the UK, has teamed up with one local school to create a version of its menu to suit pupils and has also provided the links to the organic food suppliers. The chefs from the pub have taught school cooks how to make stock and mustard vinaigrette as well as fish filleting. Parents are invited to tastings and trial runs are being made with the children before the new school year. As the principal said "We're not trying to be posh, this is not just for middle-class people. Good food is good food". And the menu: butternut squash and pea risotto with pan-friend lentil burgers, rhubarb crumble with cream, or salmon pie with mashed potato topping and steamed savoy cabbage. Where do we sign up? :: The Guardian...
A need for simple, modern, affordable furniture was the ultimate goal for Cain Collection (chair pictured here) from the designers at STAACH; but they've gone far beyond that, including some useful extra features like being stackable and the ability to be upholstered.
Chair is Simple and Modern, but Sustainable Too!
Even better, the line is the first production piece to truly encompass their concept of "sustainability" in manufacturing and design; the wood comes from sustainable sources in New York and Pennsylvania, and all the fabrication is done in house with only two tools. The chairs are finished with non-toxic wood glue and water-based, low- to no-VOC lacquers, and can be flat packed (requiring a bit of assembly) for shipping. This modern, stackable, sustainable chair by STAACH is available at Branch....
Well, that may be a somewhat humorous take on a huge issue, but the good news is that a majority of American voters in six congressional districts now see global warming as the biggest environmental problem according to a new poll by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Seventy-three percent of the voters polled favored immediate measures to reduce carbon emissions with just 19% favoring the idea of waiting for new technologies to solve the crisis. And sixty-three percent of voters polled support the idea of placing mandatory limits on emissions from power plants through a cap-and-trade system that allows trading in carbon pollution permits to help make that happen. By a measure of 50 to 25 percent, voters polled said that pollution permits should be sold to U.S. companies with the revenues dedicated to funding new energy saving technologies, and protecting consumers and displaced workers. Clearly, the greater percentage of those polled do not want to see the permits given to U.S. companies for free…...
See if these folks were flaunting sexy butts, then you wouldn't want to get 'em off the beach. Surfers Against Sewage (SAS), Marine Conservation Society and British Naturist campaigners took to a Brighton beach and took a crack at getting out the word. You say but you've told us this before. But it's too difficult to get rid of my cigarette butt when I'm at the beach. Butt, butt, butt...
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Looking down from the formal heights of The Economist offices, a green carpet invites you to come out and take a break. A lush grass installation of 40 square meters fills this little bit of London with a relaxed atmosphere and invites you to gather on its comfortable surface. 'Convocation’ calls individuals to come together without restriction. The installation, which opened yesterday, is commissioned by the Economist Group and designed by Sparks, an interdisciplinary collaboration of artists and designers based in London.
It sounds like three Welsh fishing buddies have developed the next best thing to a perpetual motion machine. The concept is thus: Fitted to car instead of an exhaust their Greenbox device traps carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide. The box needs to be replaced about every full tank of fuel. “Through a chemical reaction, the captured gases from the box would be fed to algae, which would then be crushed to produce a bio-oil. This extract can be converted to produce a biodiesel almost identical to normal diesel.” Voila! - driving your car produces fuel. After a couple of years of testing and umpteen hundreds of thousands of dollars invested in research it would appear that there is more to this than the usual magic solution that crosses our desks. Of course the devil is usually in the detail. ...
Hi,
I'm considering purchasing a 2007 Mercedes Bluetec e320 Diesel. My question is "Is this car really green?"
My 04 Prius has 60k miles and is worse for wear and I'm too tall to comfortably drive it any longer. I can't help but think the Bluetec is a step in reverse for me personally and that I really want to move forward with a Plug-in Hybrid or full EV, but no options exist. I'm tired of driving a constrictive tiny car built for the 95% of Japanese people, I'm not willing to accept a hybrid SUV, the notion is ridiculous. I want 50mpg+! and I want to stop BURNING fuel. What's my next car?
Thanks!
Lex
Hey Lex,
Is the Mercedes Bluetec e320 Diesel green? Well, one thing's for certain...it doesn't feel as green as a Prius. Unfortunately, it's hard to get both the green feeling and the headroom. Green cars aren't small because they're built for Japanese people, they're small because to be efficient, cars need to be light, and present a low profile to the 70 mph winds that constantly buffet highway cars. ...
Ed. note: This is the second post (read the first one about biodiesel) in the Green Basics series of posts that TreeHugger is writing to provide basic information about important ideas, materials and technologies for new greenies (or those who just need a quick refresher). Read on, about compost and stay tuned!
What is compost?
Compost is the "aerobically derived remnants of organic materials" (thank you Wikipedia), meaning its what you get when you combine the leftovers of plant and animal-based stuff, add a little air, water and nitrogen. The decomposition is performed primarily by aerobes (organisms with oxygen-based metabolism), although larger creatures such as ants, nematodes, and worms (this process is also known as vermiculture) can also contribute. This decomposition occurs naturally except for in extreme anaerobic conditions, like in landfills, very arid deserts or cold weather such as boreal winters or polar regions, which prevent the microbes and other decomposers from thriving. Decomposition happens even in the absence of some of these ingredients, but not as quickly or as pleasantly. Compost is used most often at the consumer level in gardening and agriculture as a fertilizer-type soil additive, and can also often replace commercial fertilizers....
If climate change is primarily the result of burning fossil fuels isn't offsetting with trees simply a distraction? Shouldn't we focus on renewable energy projects that can replace the use of fossil fuel?
It's true that burning fossil fuels accounts for the largest proportion of carbon emissions. Nevertheless, the loss of trees plays a significant role. The conversion of forests has contributed around 30% of the total carbon build up in the atmosphere since 1850. And it continues – deforestation still accounts for over 20% of emissions a year. ...
Solar-powered single-family homes are so yesterday. Sure, we appreciate the many owners who have become their own utility company (many times even putting their excess solar energy in the grid). However, when it comes to the other factors of smart housing, single-family homes can't hold a candle to multi-family units. Not only does an apartment or condo complex use much less land (and therefore much less infrastructure) than single-family homes on a per unit basis, it creates the density needed to support communities where walkability and public transportation are top notch. That's why we love when multi-family units start powering up with the technologies gaining traction in single-unit residences.
This all brings us to the SOLARA, the recently opened apartment complex in Poway, California that claims to be the first fully solar-powered apartment complex in the state. The SOLARA includes 56 apartment units and office space within walking distance of services, shopping and public transportation. Southern California + green building + apartment name in all capital letters - you might think this is more green housing for the wealthy. You would be wrong....
"The U.S. Department of Energy's Building America program has released a new best practices handbook for builders, High-Performance Home Technologies: Solar Thermal & Photo-voltaic Systems. The guidebook explains current photo-voltaic and solar thermal building practices and provides useful tips for builders and home buyers. The book also enhances the information contained in the previous Best Practices volumes that give climate-specific tips for energy-efficient building in five climate zones."
The guide is very well laid out and attractively presented: unusal for a tech handbook. Donwload the entire thing here. Via::Renewable Energy Access....
This week, TreeHugger is giving away 10 pairs of tickets to the LA screening of the upcoming movie Arctic Tale. Congrats to everyone who has already scored tickets, however we still have a few tickets left to give away. Here's what you have to do: scavenge TreeHugger and arctictale.com for the answers to the questions at the bottom of this post. Then, simply send your answers to: contest [at] treehugger [dot] com as soon as you find all the answers. We only have a few tickets left, and the first readers to email us the answers will come away with a pair of tickets, so hurry up and answer these questions! ...
Last week’s issue (July 5-11) of Time Out New York (TONY) was the magazine’s “Green Issue” and their cover really made you want to turn the page to see what it was all about. Jam packed with information about how New Yorkers can lead a more eco-friendly lifestyle, it also includes features about shopping, green building and sites to see, such as the Queens Botanical Garden where the cover photo was taken by controversial photographer Spencer Tunik. Our favorites included the “B.S. Factor” where TONY scrutinizes the green life and events (Live Earth included) to find the truth behind the green fad, as well as “What Shade Are You?” The latter discusses different “shades of green” and how a resident of NYC can help the environment, even if they do nothing at all or at least the bare minimum. With so many different boutiques to choose from in NYC we also appreciated their insight into where we can find the latest eco-chic. Is running for exercise your thing? You might want to check out TONY’s review on air pollution – it’ll make you think twice about this evening’s trek. We couldn’t take our eyes off this issue…and it might not even be making its way to the recycling bin. All articles are available online by searching “The Green Issue.” ::Time Out New York...
According to a new poll released by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a majority of voters in six moderate to conservative congressional districts now believe global warming to be the top environmental problem and favor immediate actions to reduce carbon emissions. Air pollution and clean air were mentioned by 40% of respondents while clean water was only cited as a major concern by 25%.
Telephone surveys were conducted among voters who live in the congressional districts of six members of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee (which will be considering new global warming emissions legislation in the fall). In each case, 402 individuals were interviewed for a total of 2,416. The aggregate findings showed that an unprecedented 7 out of 10 voters agreed that global warming was a serious problem and, that given a choice, 73% would like to start cutting down on emissions now. Only 19% of voters expressed a preference for waiting until cleaner technologies were available....
At first glance, the Piccolo Grande by nobodyandco may just look like classic outdoor furniture, but grab one end and pull, and watch what happens: by simply sliding the structure, the staves separate and double in length, transforming a table for two into a table for four, and intimate seating for a date into a dinner party. We aren't crazy about the use of teak as the wood of choice, but we're suckers for sleek multi-functional, space-saving furniture like this. The designer, whose groovy bookcase/chair combo was also featured on TreeHugger, notes that it will be available starting in September 2007. ::nobodyandco via ::Crib Candy
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Isolating a single factor as the main cause of any phenomenon is usually a tricky disposition for scientists. Particularly in climate science, where there still resides much uncertainty over the relative contributions of individual weather characteristics to the climate patterns we've witnessed over the last few years, attempting to draw a direct line between a single event and a specific factor is almost always inadvisable. Yet that is exactly what four NOAA scientists have done in a paper in which they claim that greenhouse gases are behind over half of last year's record-breaking heat wave in the U.S.
While NOAA had originally announced in a press release that El Niño and increasing GHG levels were both to blame for 2006's unprecedented warmth, it hadn't specifically designated one as having a greater effect over the other. A group of scientists from NOAA's Earth System Research Laboratory in Boulder, Colorado, decided to find out which, if any, had a larger impact. After scrutinizing the effect of 10 El Niño warmings of the tropical Pacific on U.S. temperatures, they found that these events had actually had a slight cooling effect on northern states. In separate trials using two distinct climate models to simulate the same El Niño effect, they confirmed this cooling trend. ...
We all know that we're supposed to talk to our plants (and maybe give them an occasional hug) to make them healthier, but now the plants are talking back. A company called Botanicalls have merged plant care with telecommunications, devising and constructing a way to bring container gardening to the 21st century: using their system, your plants will call you on the phone when they need to be watered, when they haven't gotten enough, and to thank you when they're no longer thirsty.
With a duo of goals -- keeping the plants alive by translating the communication protocols of the plants (leaf habit, color of foliage, droop, etc) to more common human communication protocols (email, voice phone calls, digital visualizations, etc) and making a connection between people and plants by exploring and visualizing people's emotional connection to plants and the ways plants help humans -- the project empowers communication between plants and people. Hey, the more plants around, the better, right? See the plants in action, making some calls at a video over at Reuters and see what's in store for Phase 2 after the jump....
AIDG Blog: Carnival of the Green # 86 by Catherine Laine
"Live Earth is maybe the concert equivalent of Marmite for environmentalists: either you loved it or you hated it. Jim Jay of the Daily Maybe weighs in with his thoughts. Despite the title of his post, “Open Sewer Earth”, which would suggest that Jim is in the “hated it” camp, he gives fair analysis of how the naysayers have a few things all wrong."
Ecorazzi: Anya Bags Sell Out in 29 Minutes at Columbus Circle by Melissa Rosenberg. "I arrived at Whole Foods on Columbus Circle this morning in the pouring rain to take photos of Anya Hindmarch’s “I’m Not a Plastic Bag” buyers. I was lucky enough have pre-ordered my bag at the Theory Store’s “It’s Easy Being Green” event in early June. The bags went on sale at 8am. I arrived at about 8:27 and snapped my first photo at 8:29 just as a Whole Foods rep came outside to tell the crowd, “The last bag has just been sold."...
In a city like New York where the brunt of emissions derives from buildings, anything that helps reduce energy consumption, especially during the summer when air conditioning is at its peak usage, can go a long way toward easing some pressure off its overworked power grids. Several companies seem to have found an ideal solution to the city's grid problems and their own AC-related energy woes: using an innovative ice-cooling system that relies on blocks of ice to pump cold air through buildings.
The Off-Peak Cooling (OPC) system, devised by CALMAC, a company that specializes in the manufacturing of thermal energy storage and ice rink equipment, not only lowers energy use but it also cuts down on pollution by drastically reducing the emissions typically generated by normal AC systems. "It is worth it to do in New York City. If you take the time to look, you can find innovative ways to be energy efficient, be environmental and sustainable," said William Beck, the head of critical engineering systems for Credit Suisse, which has incorporated this system into many of its offices. ...
Hey, it's been awhile since we talked Wal-Mart right? They report having achieved a 15% improvement in transportation efficiency and are headed to 25% and beyond. Moreover, their progress is going to drive the competition and independent shippers to take similar steps. For background, check out an earlier post we did on one of the long-term truck design changes that will help Wal-Mart meet a stretch goal beyond 25%.
Back to the present: Wal-Mart says it is already well under way to meet its transportation efficiency goals. Its "fleet of about 7,200 semi-tractor trailer trucks is already about 15% more fuel efficient and the company knows what changes it needs to make to meet a target of 25% by late next year. The annual savings in carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, would be equal to taking 67,744 cars off the road."
"The 15% gain has come mainly from three changes: A fuel additive mix, more fuel-efficient tires and small diesel generators called Alternate Power Units added to tractors to provide power for things like heating and air conditioning in the cab, allowing the big truck engine to be turned off rather than idling when the truck is parked."...
Farting has come up on TreeHugger before, but mainly in relation to cows. We’ve seen garlic used to fight cow farts, and we’ve seen scientists using fumaric acid, and plant derived tannins to do the same. All because of the huge environmental impact of methane emissions from cows. Human flatulence, however, has escaped our notice (at least editorially!) until now. This will all change if Fart Neutral have their way. Working from the self-declared, and hard to disprove, premise that “farts are funny”, fart neutral are offering various carbon offset products to neutralise one person's methane emissions in a year. While the concept may seem a little, well, immature, it does seem that this organization’s intentions are noble:
[This is the second in a series of five guest posts looking at the importance of brand strategy and effective marketing for green and ethical businesses. For post one, click here.]
The key to marketing sustainability is making it relevant to values consumers already hold. Instead of trying to convince people they need to care about "sustainability" — it's more productive to talk to them about honesty, responsibility, fairness and innovation - all the things sustainability, at its core, is about.
A quite impressive 1.4 million people read Treehugger in the course of a month -- yet that's not enough to sustain a movement. For sustainability to be sustainable, it has to instigate a permanent structural change in how MOST PEOPLE live their lives. To reach a majority of people, we need to make our values relevant to a majority of people. And the majority of First World earthlings don't wake up planning to save the planet. Instead, they're hungry for breakfast, concerned about their family, curious about the newest episode of CSI, and wondering how they're going to get through their day. It's important to understand what captures the imaginations and anxieties of the folks outside our 1.4 million circle of tree huggers. Here are some numbers:
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Everyone is gaga over HP7 being "the greenest book of all time" and showing the silly graphic showing the "impact reduction" of its publishing worldwide. We knew that Raincoast Books in Canada has published its version in ancient forest free 100% recycled paper, but they did that for HP6 and all of their books, nothing new there. We know also that the author asked that all of her publishers use 100% recycled content.
Yet the biggest publisher of them all, Scholastic, serving the American market, refused. TreeHugger emeritus Hank Green notes that "only 65% of the pulp used in HP7 (American edition) is certified ancient-forest friendly." So 130,000 trees have been saved but how many have been chopped because of Scholastic's intransigence?
That 35% of a doorstop the size and print run of the American Harry Potter probably represents more trees lost than any other book published in the States this year. Hank says "Scholastic is being fairly backward and profit-driven here. How much cash do they really need to haul here. Honestly, they could pass the cost onto the consumer and absolutely no one would mind."
It is surprising that smart American green websites would fall for this international averaging out of Scholastic's boreal clearcut. ::Eco-Geek
UPDATE: A commenter accuses me of being negative again: "Can't we just be happy with the efforts they did make, not the efforts they didn't?" No, not when they are calling it "the greenest book of all time" which it clearly is not. We applaud them for their efforts, not their public relations.
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A perfect companion to the lite2go lamp in your zero waste home, the television packaging designed by Tom Ballhatchet becomes the television stand. Putting wheels on it for easy transport home, Ballhatchet designed the areas that the screen occupied inside the package to be used as shelves for the TV stand (the wheels come off and go underneath), and the result is the first large appliance packaging we've seen that won't end up in the recycle bin or landfill when you get it unpacked. Yeah, TVs will soon hog the most energy of any single appliance in your home, so we generally aren't crazy about boob tubes, but you can't deny the intelligence and design savvy of this innovative package, and you won't have to worry about what to do when you upgrade. Check out step-by-step pics of the unpacking and setup process after the jump. ::Tom Ballhatchet via ::Hugg and ::Gizmodo...
Don't let the simplistic-looking design or ironic name throw you; Hurdle Lighting offers more than meets the eye, and is actually designed to remove barriers, rather than put them up. Named for its shape when "lying down," the task lighting system offers two ways to illuminate your desk; put it upright, and it resembles a traditional task light (pictured above), set it down, and it looks more like its namesake (pictured after the fold). The really cool part: a sensor in the lamp tells it where to shine the light, which sounds crazy but appears to work; there's a picture that better explains it after the jump. The smart, slender design keeps it out of your way on the desk, and we like the quick-changing functionality of the simple form. Sadly, it's but a prototype at the moment, having just been named a finalist for the Lightouch Design 07 Competition; we'll be in line when it hits the market. The pics after the jump offer insight into its multi-functionality. ::Lightouch via ::SciFi Tech...
If John Ryan didn't read Made to Break, he sure channelled it with his Abeio (latin for "to disappear") line of garden furniture and accessories, created as his thesis at OCAD. He notes that many people live in urban locatrions with limited storage space and treat outdoor furniture as consumables, throwing them away at the end of a season. He asks "If outdoor furnishings are used as consumables, then why aren't they designed as consumables?" He designed some examples:
The aveioLight is "Made entirely of beeswax — a non-toxic, renewable, and biodegradable ignition source — abeioLights are designed to be planted in the ground and used for outdoor lighting. The cup shaped top of the candle provides cover against drafts, while the tapered base gives stability and support. Since abeioLights are made from beeswax, any drippings that may end up on the ground will biodegrade without harm to garden life."
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If you want to do a greener and more ethical food shop and are baffled by the overwhelming choices, here are 5 questions, and answers, to ponder while stalking the aisles of the supermarket. Number 1: Where can I find products without excessive packaging? Buy loose fruits and vegetables, or look for packaging that is recyclable or compostable. Ask the supermarket to take back the packaging that you don't need, and take a bag with you. Number 2: What fish and seafood is from sustainable sources? General guidelines: don't buy deep-water species as they tend to be over-fished, don't eat fish during their breeding season and look for seasonal purchasing guides. Download the Pocket Good Fish Guide and carry it in your bag.
Number 3: Do you stock a Fairtrade version of this? Ask for Fairtrade products and supermarkets will start to respond by stocking them. Number 4: Where can I find local produce? Look at the packaging carefully, sometimes the same vegetables from two different countries will be sitting side by side. Again, pester your supermarket to increase the local and seasonal food that it carries. Number 5: Do you know where the palm oil in your products comes from ? Palm oil plantations in Indonesia and Malaysia are having a devastating effect on the rainforest. Palm oil is often not on ingredient lists. Steer clear of processed food.
And lastly, an important question when it comes to finances: How to buy organic on a tight budget? Some fruits and vegetables have more pesticide residues than others. If you can’t afford to switch to all organic, consider buying organic: flour, potatoes, bread, apples, pears, grapes, strawberries, green beans, tomatoes and cucumbers. :: thelondonpaper ...
So do you pack in the old Charger for a Prius? Pablo says so- "Continuing to drive an older car with poor fuel economy is less environmentally friendly than getting a new car that gets drastically better fuel economy." However our commenters dissented: "A 1984 Honda Civic gets better mileage than a new one because it is smaller, lighter, and designed in an era when high mileage was king. Sure, it isn't as safe or as fast, but in many ways it is as efficient." UPDATE: Adria Vasil of Ecoholic (interviewed here) agrees with Pablo, in Now Magazine, copied below fold.
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Great Bow Yard is "a unique development of 12 stunningly designed houses and apartments,...These homes have been built using sustainably sourced materials, avoiding toxic chemicals commonly found in new houses. They are insulated far above normal standards for UK construction and incorporate renewable energy sources and energy-saving devices. "
and they look terrific, inside and out. Watch the video:
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Solar production capacity is expanding at the BP Solar-owned Frederick MD, USA plant. Ground breaking has taken place on a "$97 million expansion project that will further bolster the facility's output of solar energy products...Already the largest fully integrated solar plant in North America, the plan is to nearly double the current casting and sizing capacity to approximately 150 MW and will create approximately 70 new jobs."
"Exactly nine months ago, the company announced it would invest $70 million in the project. That figure has now been increased to $97 million, which will allow for space to further enlarge its manufacturing capacity to 400+ MW in its casting, sizing, and wafering processes. Construction is slated for completion by the end of 2009."...
If you're wearing a sweater from Flocks, a new knitwear brand from the Netherlands, you'll be able to trace the wool back to the very animal that provided it. Because one sheep provides enough wool for exactly one sweater, the company is able to credit each animal for the fiber used via a tag that lists the animal's ID number, breed, and weight, as well as its year and place of birth. You even get a photo of your sheep. How's that for an ultrapersonal touch? Prices start at EUR 475.
While non-dyed wool is currently being used in all its natural glory, Flock plans on extending its provenance labels to materials dyed with plant-based extracts, so you'll be able to meditate on the type of plant used and where it was harvested. :: Flocks
[via Springwise]
See also: :: Smartwool Requires Wool Suppliers To End "Mulesing", :: Alpaca: The Green Sheep?, and :: Sheep to Shear Themselves, Aided by a Mobile Phone?...
I'm waiting for the day I pop open my RSS feed and see 'Free Energy - Environmentally Enriching Solar PV System to be Distributed to Anyone Who Wants One'. But today was not that day. Instead something almost as exciting arrived, Somenath Mitra, PhD, professor and acting chair of Chemistry and Environmental Sciences at New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) (Pictured) has led a group in developing a 'A fullerene–single wall carbon nanotube complex for polymer bulk heterojunction photovoltaic cells' - I know...cool huh? Basically, the team developed a unique molecule made out of carbon nanotubes and buckyballs that can go inside organic solar cells. Now, I enjoy buckyball and nanotube papers about as much as a person possibly can (for e.g. see here, here,here or here). I admit, we (society) don't really know much about nanotube or buckyball health impacts, nor are the little buggers cheap. We (society again) need to seriously consider the materials we choose to use for our mass produced items. But what I do like is how the research group is mimicking nature (in the general design if not the materials). ...
When Kern County School District Superintendent Larry Reid decided it was time to take steps within the school district to improve air quality and reduce CO2 emissions he found he had an unlikely ally,,, Homebuilders. That's because for each new home built in the area developers contribute about $1200 into a fund to be used to help offset the pollution put out by the process as a result of a settlement between them and the Sierra Club.
Predictably, developers weren't so happy at first about the added cost to their building budgets, but now they've found that virtually every developer in the area has to make some sort of payment to help protect the environment, and the money is certainly being put to good use. Reid's used the $330K his district received from the fund to help offset the added cost of purchasing 7 additional clean burning compressed natural gas (CNG) buses, bringing the total to 38 of the 89 buses in the district that now run on the cleaner fuel. And at 160K per bus as opposed to 120K for the traditional diesel variety, the fund has really helped make the purchase possible. Long term, the fact that CNG is ultimately about one-third cheaper than diesel should help further offset the costs as well. Ultimately he's looking to replace all of the buses, a worthy goal for every school district and municipality in the country.
via:: The Bakersfield Californian ...
Taking out the trash at home is one thing, but taking out the trash in space? Disposing of the millions of pieces of trash floating in space, 13,000 of which measure more than 30 ft long each, is not always just a question of sanitation: it can be a question of survival. Any one of those pieces, moving at speeds of up to several thousands of miles an hour, could pierce a hole in a space shuttle or the International Space Station. And while most space trash does eventually either burn up as it enters the Earth's atmosphere or fall harmlessly into an ocean or parcel of land upon successful re-entry, the odds are favorable enough for this to be a significant concern.
Under normal circumstances, astronauts get rid of their trash by waiting for a Russian Progress supply ship to take it away or by returning it to Earth on a shuttle flight. Sounds easy enough. But how to dispose of a hulking 1,360 pound coolant storage unit? The EAS (early ammonia servicing unit), located on the outside of the space station, is about to be replaced with a newer, more powerful system, but the astronauts haven't yet figured out a way to conveniently dispose it....
The shady Japanese Cedar, or Sugi, has long been a symbol of that island's cultural and religious connection to nature. Japan's national tree, avenues of these giants can often be found leading to temples and forming entire forests in the mountains. Because of the wood's softness however, Sugi has never been considered suitable for construction or furniture. This has led to an overabundance of these trees, which have began to squeeze out other species and limit biodiversity. ...
The Nobody Chair is no ordinary place to park your tush. Danish design company Komplot used a manufacturing technique borrowed from the car industry to mold recycled plastic water bottles into the sleek, stackable sitters. Says a Hay spokesperson, "This is the first chair ever made with the textile alone as the construction. The material used is industrial felt mainly made out of recycled plastic bottles. The felt is put into a huge form press and heated up – when the chair comes out of the press its done," which is a very efficient-sounding process, to us. The chair has been shortlisted for the Craft and Design Biennial 2007 Prize; see the write-up and a pic of what the Nobody Chair looks like when it travels in packs, after the jump. ::Komplot via ::dezeen...
Plastic bags have been disappearing from towns and cities all over the world. San Fransisco, Modbury and Fitzroy Falls, as well as shops like Ikea. Many European countries have long charged for plastic bags, which has created a culture where people regularly bring their own reusable bags to supermarkets. This is just as convenient, and the waste savings are enormous.
In a surprising, but fantastic move, council leaders have suggested that London could be declared a plastic bag free zone. They would either be banned outright, or priced at 10p to both discourage their use and raise finds for recycling efforts. ...
We don't get to say this kind of thing very often, but find it particularly apropos: that is one sexy clothesline/drying rack. As we noted awhile back, 75% of the energy consumption of apparel comes from laundering (rather than production or distribution), so avoiding the dryer and using something like this beauty is a great way to cut that number way, way back, and tends to be a lot easier (and effective) during the warm summer months. It looks like it comes apart for easy transport and storage, too...nice. Get the full low-down on how to stay green while you clean with TreeHugger's How to Green Your Cleaning Guide. ::swissmiss via ::Apartment Therapy: Green...
One of the attractions of modern prefab has always been that one gets the design talent of a good architect without having to go through the time and expense of actually working with one; many people also are afraid of architects, fearing that they will get what the architect is selling rather than what they want to buy.
This is particularly an issue with modern design, where people are much more likely to be comfortable if they can see plans and pictures of a house that has already been resolved. It is the reason for the success of Michelle Kaufmann's modern prefabs; once the first is built the others are much easier.
For quite a few years now Greg Lavardera has been selling modern home plans, and now quite a few of them are getting built. Shown above is Greg's Plat House built for Don DeFeo, who confirms the point: According to the New York Times, the fact that the Plat House had been built before only helped to convince him. “There was one already completed in Arkansas,” said Mr. DeFeo, “and they had great pictures of the house online.”
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If you like your togs sweatshop-free, but don't want to fatten the pockets of a pornographer, check out Alternative Apparel's new eco-friendly line.
Making its debut late July, the Alternative Earth collection is made from pesticide-free organic cotton, recycled polyester, and rayon made from naturally occurring polymers, and then dyed with non-toxic, low-impact dyes.
The environmental-forwardness of the line can be somewhat misleading, however, when you examine the fine print. While some of the company's tees are indeed 100 percent organic cotton, certain styles, such as the Eco-Heather Sleeveless Hoodie, contain 38 percent cotton, with only 7 percent of that actually organic.
Expect clean, classic lines in the form of tees, hoodies, tanks, henleys, and track pants, available in both solid and heather colors. A basic crew-neck tee costs $28. :: Alternative Apparel
See also: :: The Gap Goes Organic-Cotton Pickin', :: H&M's New Organic Cotton Collection, and :: L. L. Bean Does Organic Cotton...
Gareth Grove bought an enormous Hummer. So big, in fact, that it wouldn't fit in his garage, and he had to leave it on the street in the leafy suburb where he lives. But that's OK, because Hummers are built to last, and the leaves wouldn't hurt it at all. And for five days it lasted just fine, it's rugged over-engineering valiantly fending off falling leaves and slight breezes.
However, two people then decided that they didn't agree with Hummers, and that they should make a statement about their disapproval. They smashed the Hummer's windows, slashed every tire and scratched into the paint the words, "FOR THE ENVIRON." Presumably over-estimating the enormity of the car and running out of space for the last word. But that was to be expected, because this was hardly the most well thought out plan ever conceived.
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Here you have your typical suburban development in Effingham County outside of Savannah, Georgia. It doesn't look much like Savannah, one of the most beautiful cities I have seen which was rather denser than this, and those lawns need a fair bit of water. And unfortunately, there isn't enough in the formerly vast Upper Floridian Aquifer; if you suck the fresh water out it sucks saltwater in to replace it. According to the New York Times, “Maybe not in one year or two,” said Steve Liotta, an Effingham County engineer, “but in 5, 10 or 15 years, wells in cities served by the Upper Floridan aquifer would increasingly become contaminated with saltwater.”
Now they are piping water in from Savanna and have banned new wells. Where people used to pay $30 a month for water they are now paying $ 300. “It can be very hard on a family’s budget.” But the community has no plans to cut back on residential or commercial growth and is "now trying to play catch-up to solve the problems.” How? ::New York Times...
Chris Mooney is not one to mince words. Within the first few pages of his latest book, he immediately sets out to clarify an important point, one that will likely take many readers aback: "Global warming did not cause Hurricane Katrina, or any other weather disaster."
In so doing, he helps set the tone for much of what the book will scrutinize: not whether global warming directly triggered the strong hurricanes we've already witnessed, but whether it is likely to further strengthen or otherwise alter the behavior of hurricanes. This point also relates to a greater overall theme that Mooney emphasizes throughout Storm World: the fact that most of science, meteorology and climate science included, is often fraught with more unknowns and uncertainty than clear answers.
After giving a brief synopsis detailing his personal experience dealing with Hurricane Katrina (a catastrophe he helped portend several months beforehand in the pages of The American Prospect), its aftermath and the genesis of his book, he plunges right into the early and extensive history of meteorology. What is interesting to note is that many of the characters and fundamental disagreements that he chronicles during this period, known as the American Storm Controversy, would find parallels years later in our modern hurricane-climate debate. ...
Photo credit: neforum
You'd better back away from your monitor because we're going to be sick, and it's not going to be pretty. Another primo example of human asshattery: A crew of Brazilian fishermen was caught on camera slaughtering 83 dolphins and then joking about their very illegal haul, according to Brazil's Ibama environmental protection agency.
The video, which was obtained by an undercover Ibama researcher and broadcast by the country's Globo TV, showed the fishermen netting the dolphins off the coast of Amapa state, near the point where the Amazon River flows into the Atlantic Ocean. Because the famously social and human-friendly marine mammals couldn't surface to breathe, they suffocated.
As the dolphins were hauled up onto the boat's deck, the fishermen on board laughed after someone said, "Everyone's going to jail after this filming!" Charges have not been filed because authorities are still trying to identify the parties involved, says Globo TV....
Shrewdly combining a respect for history and a current sensibility, Joel Voisard's 3Designs cool ottomans are centered on manufacturing and factory parts boxes from the 1920's. He spices them up by blending in found components, such as fixtures, casters, and even old stereo knobs with high-end upholstery giving each piece a polished, vintage feel that transcends different eras and becoming a funky compilation of innovative characteristics and classic persona. The finished pieces also open and can be used for storage. Above is "Animal," which Voisard characterizes as representing "the concrete jungle of NYC"; we love the almost cartoony juxtaposition of materials and style. Beneath the fold: pics of something called "White Knuckler." Put your feet up at ::Voisard 3Design...
We have said at TreeHugger that some of the most important ways to live a green life, lie in the small simple things. One suggestion towards this is wearing slippers around the house instead of turning the heating up. TreeHugger does love a good slipper, like these folding felt slippers, the renew slippers and the po-zu natural slippers. If you are crafty why not try recycling some warm worn old clothes and make yourself a pair of cosy slippers. If you are in the Southern Hemisphere these will be particularly welcomed. ::Sew Green slipper tutorial...
Have you been itching to buy FirstSolar (FSLR), but nervous to get on board with the stock going hyperbolic? If yes, Barrons just did a front page story on how FSLR "may get singed." Given the stock's unbelievable run over recent weeks, investors are likely to bag some profits ahead of the Quarter 2 earnings release on July 30. Barrons feels that recent developments in Germany are negative for FSLR, and that FSLR is incorrectly perceived as being a thin-solar technology that will miss out on the "Solar 2.0" boom.
One of the trends in ethical and environmental investing right now includes alternative energy ETF investing. ETFs allow you to buy and sell funds on the stock market, much as you do stocks. One of the newer offerings in terms of alternative energy ETFs is the Market Vectors Global Alternative Energy ETF (GEX), based on the stocks of 30 companies that are involved in alternative energy, making it both highly green and highly risky.
Microfinance is the business of providing very small loans, or "microloans", to poor communities around the world in an effort to spur local entrepreneurship and community development. With most loans valued at less than $100, this is oftentimes all that is needed to jump start economic growth in impoverished areas, but one of the major challenges that the microfinance industry is facing right now is how to raise $300 billion to reach the required geographies....
TreeHugger loves to talk about eco-myths, such as the perennial complaint that wind turbines are a danger to bird life. One common assertion, which we have not been quite sure whether to place as eco myth or not, is that driving an old car is greener than buying a new, fuel efficient one. This view cropped up in the comments section of How to Green Your Car, and it has also lead Archaeo to ask ‘Old Vehicle or New?’ over at our forums. So which is it? How can you evaluate the energy and emissions involved in manufacture, vs. the emissions released during use? Fortunately, Triple Pundit has done some serious math on this issue in their Ask Pablo feature, and the results come out in favour of purchasing a new, efficient vehicle:
Chuck Hoberman wowed this Treehugger at the Transportable Environments conference a few years ago; he builds toys and sculptures that expand and contract and which are a hit at science museums. He also builds bigger architectural transformations such as the Iris Dome at Expo 2000 or the fabulous stage set at the opening of the Salt Lake City Olympics. He is part of the "smart geometry" movement and even has designed transformer furniture. Now he wows Japan's PingMag in an extensive interview. We find that so many TreeHugger themes, from transformers to transportable design to even biomimicry come up in this one interivew, for example:
your website states that you design objects that transform like natural organisms… Like what?
There is an aspect of our design practise which you can call biomimicry: It is part of the general strategy to use nature as an example to design, particularly with its performance and action. We imitate the way organisms grow or change shape or adapt themselves to different conditions. However, the transformable systems that we develop are technology and mathematically based. Basically they are a practical means to build structures or develop products that can change size and shape in order to have some structural benefit, a reason. Read interview at ::PingMag...
China's seasonal flooding--and the controversial Three Gorges Dam meant to help control it--have led to China's newest environmental threat: billions of rats. By releasing a huge flow of Yangtze River water to control flooding in the face of the annual rainy season, dam officials inundated the banks of Dongting Lake, a series of wetlands and lakes downstream of the Three Gorges that stretches across Hunan province. Resident rodents -- whose numbers have grown unusually large due to an earlier dry spell, and to a local culinary interest in snakes, rats' main predator -- migrated en masse to dry land, leaving behind them a trail of destruction in about 20 counties, the rodents' munching so loud that villagers could reportedly hear it from inside their homes.
Though rat infestations after floods are not uncommon, this is "the largest rat disaster the lakeside region has experienced in the last 10 years," Zuo Shigeng, a local agricultural official, told China Daily. As one farmer said, "It's like the mopping up by enemy troops in wars. We have nothing left."
On top of massive destruction to agriculture (6,000 square miles of crops have been damaged), the rodents threaten to spread disease in especially vulnerable areas, a concern that has led residents to bury or cremate more than 2 million rodents -- their bodies weighing an estimated 90 tonnes in total. To kill the rats, people have resorted to poison, some of it illegal, which has led to the widespread deaths of cats and stoked official fears about soil pollution and the development of a "super rat," immune to pesticides.
But some enterprising souls have reportedly entered the rat race with a different idea (and with apparently no qualms about China's recent reputation for food safety): selling them as food. ...
While it’s true that the principals behind Silicon Valley's green energy start-ups have many worries, homework usually isn't one of them. That’s not the case, however, behind a new venture called Calsunergy. The chief executive hopes to launch the company before beginning eighth grade in the fall. The chief technical officer is just getting ready to start sixth grade. And the company's chief financial officer and vice president of marketing are readying themselves for only the fifth grade! ...
While it's always encouraging to see companies turn over a new leaf and adopt a more pro-active, sustainable approach to conducting business, we all know that for every one company that genuinely follows through with its lofty commitments, ten more will try to greenwash their way to that goal. Case in point is Target. Although it may claim to be committed to environmental values and to "respecting the communities and ecosystems" it "operates in" by reducing its energy impact, gaffes like this only serve to highlight the emptiness of their green rhetoric.
Ignoring five previous orders from the EPA to remove all cans of illegally imported confetti string products from its shelves, Target will be slapped with a $120,000 civil penalty for carrying and selling Horrible Spooky String. Many of these confetti string products are known to contain hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), toxic chemicals which, in addition to increasing one's risk of developing skin cancer, have been found to deplete the planet's ozone layer. ...
We wondered about the magazine ad we saw with happy flowers coming out of smokestacks and the message "Don't throw anything away, there is no away" in 70's happy hippy font over the top. We were reminded of Collin's little vase from the other day, a strange juxtaposition. The copy in the ad states that Shell recycles its emissions of carbon dioxide, which contribute to global warming, by piping them into greenhouses. It also states that its emissions of sulfur dioxide, another pollutant, are used to make concrete.
Dutch authorities thought so too: "What they said in the advertisement was too strong," said Simone Wesseling, a spokeswoman for the Dutch Advertising Code Authority. "Shell suggests that all of these gases are recycled and that is not the case, so our committee found a misleading environmental claim."
Shell defends it as being allegorical, saying "the image of flowers was acceptable because readers would clearly identify it as imaginary." Their website points to measures taken at the Geelong Refinery in Australia, more information here.
We think it should have been pulled for breaching the Birkenstock/Poncho rule of tired hippie graphic design, but will settle for exaggeration and greenwashing. ::IHT via ::Desmogblog
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The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) is looking for artists to submit their work for an upcoming Recycled Fashion Show on August 16, 2007. The show will be a part of the RISD Museum Gallery Night program, which is a free event and open to the public, and if accepted your pieces will be shown at one of the top design schools in the country. Submissions can be anything from clothing to jewelry to shoes and handbags. If you are interested in participating, a digital image of the piece is requested along with a short description and your name. Submissions can be sent to Deb Clemons at: dclemons (at) risd (dot) edu by this Friday, July 20, 2007. She also requests that you put “Fashion Show” in the subject line. Good luck to all, and, we might just see you there! ::RISD Museum...
With over 30,000 servers and 12,000 customers, Rackspace is one of the biggest hosting providers in the world. Big companies can be slower to take environmental initiatives - they are aren't running all these boxes off of solar, for example - yet when they do make a move it usually has a bigger, longer lasting impact. TH recently had the 'tunity to interview John Engates, CTO of Rackspace, to see what they were up to.
Hi John, can you explain what Rackspace does?
In its simplest form, we offer managed hosting; this is an offering whereby companies look to outsource their hosting solutions.
Rackspace Managed Hosting delivers enterprise-level managed services to businesses of all sizes. Serving more than 12,000 customers in eight data centers worldwide, Rackspace integrates the industry’s best technologies for each customer need and delivers it as a service via the company’s award-winning Fanatical Support™. Through trusted relationships, Rackspace serves as an extension of its customers’ IT departments, enabling them to focus on their core business.
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Vinegar is a pretty versatile substance. Basically just acetic acid, it can be used to replace many commercial cleaning products which can be harmful to the environment. Our guide to greening your cleaning says, "most of the conventional cleaning products we all grew up with are petroleum-based and have dubious health and environmental implications.". Also, if you're like me, some cleaning products can give you a bit of a headache after use, which shouldn't happen with vinegar. Another benefit is cost - some cleaning products are very expensive, but vinegar can be bought quite cheaply....
To bring out your inner scientist, along with the gardening urge: your own personal hydroponic garden. This one is designed by two Swedes who lament our lack of connection to nature, due to the fact that people are moving to big cities and parks are becoming fewer and fewer. The Streamgarden is a hydroponic cultivator designed for plants. It is for people who travel frequently but still want to be greeted by a living plant when they return home.
Hydroponic systems are used by NASA in space, and commercial greenhouses worldwide. It's a tank system that doesn't require earth, just water and fertilizer and an electric pump. Grow your own mint, herbs or geraniums and be welcomed by something healthy and inspiring. The designers have also created an internal plant wall for offices and they invest 10% of their annual profit in renewable energy. :: Green Fortune via :: Financial Times...
I struggled with the title for this post; calling a nightclub "low energy" conjures images of people asleep in the banquettes or draped over the bar. Bar Code in Vauxhall is anything but, and on July 21 will celebrate a year of low energy design.
According to architects Woods Bagot, it is so efficient that it runs on " about the same amount of energy it takes to make a cup of tea.” Dezeen says The club employs LED lights that emit very little heat and so reduce the need for air conditioning, and has fridges that open from the top to minimise cold air escape. (TreeHugger looked at top opening fridges earlier, they really work)
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" Oyster Pleasance" by Sally Spencer-Davies
After we wrote our post about the revitalization of the English Seaside, Alex of ::Shedworking reminded us that there are a lot of initiatives going to make the seaside fun again. One is Bathing Beauties, a project "conceived by lead artist Michael Trainor to create a series of dramatic and beautiful new seaside architecture for a superb but partly forgotten 10 mile stretch of Lincolnshire coastline, UK, from Mablethorpe to Anderby Creek." It included a worldwide open competition that attracted 240 entries. What a way to renew and revitalize.
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Vatican City recently announced plans to offset the tiny nation's carbon emissions to zero for (the Year of Our Lord) 2007. Partnering with the American firm Planktos and Hungarian company KlimFa, the Vatican will sponsor the planting of hundreds of trees in Hungary. The sponsorship is a bit of a formality as the two firms have volunteered to absorb the costs of planting the holy trees. But all three partners acknowledge that the project presents a major opportunity to raise awareness about global climate change and the possibilities for helping to mitigate the impact. The Vatican has made recent overtures toward environmental action, including installing solar panels to power an audience hall and calling on the faithful to care for creation. "You can emit less carbon dioxide by not using heaters or by doing without a car. Or you can do penance, in this case by planting trees that convert CO2 into oxygen," said Monsignor Melchor Sanchez de Toca Alameda, an official at the Pontifical Council for Culture. Via ::Life In Italy...
Many people are switching to flat screen TV sets, but have owned those specialized deep TV cabinets that were designed for the earlier age of deep CRT displays, either in those wedding-cake entertainment units like the one in the picture (why were they always so traditional and ugly?) or just very deep cabinets that no longer serve any useful purpose.
What are do doing with your old TV cabinet?
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Sometimes we TreeHuggers love re-use so much you'd think we were all born in the Great Depression. Or, at least that we want to avoid something worse happening. After reading a Wall Street Journal story about states managing items confiscated by the US Transportation Security Administration, we were thinking someone should design a chair made from baseball bats and furry hand-cuffs. Ohhh baby.
The "...TSA, a division of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, relies on state agencies...to offload tons of other items that passengers "voluntarily surrender..." Some states trash or destroy some of the items, along with the shampoos, toothpaste and other gels and liquids banned in large amounts after a British bomb scare last August. But many states now sell the banned objects and keep the proceeds. Alabama, Arkansas and Illinois tout them online. Kentucky enjoys a cottage industry in Internet sales of miniature Louisville Sluggers surrendered after factory tours in the baseball bats' hometown. Pennsylvania, which collects goods at 13 airports including New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, says it collects a total of 2.5 tons of TSA goods a month and that the items, sold on eBay, since 2004 have raised $360,000 for state coffers, as of June..""
"Passengers often relinquish weaponry and restraints they had wrongly thought were mere toys. "We've got lots of furry handcuffs," says Kenneth Hess, director of Pennsylvania's Bureau of Supplies and Surplus Operations. "Riding crops. Studded collars.""
Via:: Wall Street Journal Online (subscription only; but hurry up before Rupert buys it and the rates go up). Image credit:: Flickr, via Boing Boing....
"Business Roundtable, an association of 160 chief executive officers of leading U.S. companies, has announced a new policy statement on climate change, acknowledging that climate change poses a serious risk and that the time for action is now...The Roundtable’s new policy statement proposes a series of benchmarks and principles against which climate change policy proposals should be measured."
"Chad Holliday, chairman and CEO, DuPont, and chairman of Business Roundtable’s Environment, Technology and the Economy Task Force, commented, “The thinking of U.S. CEOs on climate change is evolving significantly. A growing number of CEOs view it as a major issue for their companies and many of us have called for timely U.S. action.”"
The 4-page statement can be downloaded as a pdf file here. We notice that Business Roundtable members like trees. See below for an excerpt on that subject (bolding is ours)....
Looks like my wish for 2007 is coming true. With the greening of the Evan Almighty film production and the promise of the Get on Board campaign that eco practices would extend to the entire NBC Universal media conglomerate, Variety's web exclusive indicates that, at least from a content perspective, things are on track. Next November, environmental themes will be scripted into programming as part of a week-long "Green is Universal" initiative. Bravo Media president Lauren Zalaznick, head of NBC U's Green Council, said that all NBC U networks would participate including broadcast, the cable networks, news, sports, daytime and latenight. Understand who Zalaznick is. Amongst her credits are: co-producer on the movie Kids, producer of environmental- toxicity-horror-arthouse classic Safe, and VH1 executive producer of VH1's pre-blog meta show Pop Up Videos and Divas. Most importantly you not only remember those last two shows, you are also aware of VH1 as a network and a brand. Why? Because Zalaznick was called in to use her ample skills to rebrand, that is, redesign that network. It should come as no surprise that we TreeHuggers like good redesign just as Zalaznick becoming NBC U's Green Tsar is a wise appointment. Of this new green scribing initiative, Zalaznick says:
Paul Sprague likes boomerangs. Boomerangs and hot-dogs. And he likes nothing more than eating hot-dogs while throwing boomerangs. He has invented the Boom Chef, which is a solar powered grill that he uses to unite these two unlikely things. He describes it as, "a black aluminum grill that fits inside a wooden frame, glass on the top & bottom and reflectors to bounce in extra sunlight. I lined the inside of the box with aluminum and weatherstripped the glass. That's pretty much it. Cheap to build, free to operate - just the way I like things."...
Maybe my ears are just pointed in a very specific direction, but it seems rare when a day passes and I don't hear someone extolling the possibilities of clean technology. But it's not entirely clear what clean technology encompasses and how this very broad new category of technology is going to benefit our world in the coming decades.
I honestly don't know...but Ron Pernick does. Ron is the head of the leading clean tech research firm, Clean Edge. His experiences at Clean Edge working with experts from industries ranging from carbon composites to water filtration has made him a leading clean technology expert, and uniquely qualified to write a book entitled "The Clean Tech Revolution."
We're very happy to have Ron Pernick as our EcoGeek of the Week.
EcoGeek: The work that Clean Edge does seems extremely important, even though I don't really have any idea what you do there. Can you tell us about Clean Edge and your work?...
Adria Vasil has been writing the popular and Ecoholic column for NOW Magazine in Toronto since the spring of 2004. Adria has a degree in political science and cultural anthropology from the University of Toronto and a degree in magazine journalism from Ryerson. An advocate for the earth, women's issues and human rights since her teens, Vasil has appeared on Canada AM, The Gill Deacon Show, MTV Canada, MuchMusic, Book TV, CBC's Newsworld and much more to promote green living. She has just released Ecoholic, the book showing Canadians how they can live earth-friendly. We talked with Adria about how she got into journalism and where she sees herself in the matrix we call the media.
TreeHugger: Did you always know you wanted to get into journalism?...
It's summer and you love to travel, but you don't want to waste a lot of your money on gas. Fortunately, there's a lot of great advice circulating around the interwebs on effective ways to reduce your fuel usage and, even better, to find alternate, low-impact means of transportation. One particularly helpful guide crossed our desks earlier today, courtesy of Lifehacker, and we thought we'd highlight some of the tips:
1. Brake the right way
2. Ride the slipstream
3. Rent a smaller car
More after the jump....
This month's I.D. magazine takes a curated, contemplative look at the best design (consumer products, graphics, packaging, environments, furniture, equipment, concepts and interactive) from the past year, and showcases some really interesting and progressive ideas and designs. After pondering the question "Is it really necessary?" when considering the over 400 entries in the category, the judges picked Yves Béhar's Leaf LED lamp (featured here and here on TreeHugger) gets the nod for "Best of Category" in the Consumer Products category (page 66) and Nike's Considered shoes earn a Design Distinction (page 76) for again proving that "Green doesn't have to be ugly," as juror Paul Priestman noted. An Honorable Mentioned was awarded to the H-Racer, the world's smallest fuel cell vehicle; (page 80) if only its steering was radio-controllable, the jury wished.
Allen Berger's book, Drosscape: Wasting Land in Urban America (page 106) was the jury's favorite tome (receiving a Design Distinction in the Graphics category) about environmental issues, not just for its content, but its complex, smart, readable graphic presentation. Our pals at WorldChanging earned an Honorable Mention for the WorldChanging Book (page 111); Good Magazine (page 116) and the book version of An Inconvenient Truth(page 116) followed suit with their own Honorable Mentions as well.
We could go on and on, mentioning the Loblolly House's accolades or Humanscale's distinction (not that they don't deserve it), but we'll sum up with this instead: this issue is full of the best examples of what can happen when design and sustainability come together. The results can look beautiful, outperform other conventional products, solve real problems, and make the world a greener, healthier, happier place, and that's what great design is supposed to do. I.D. magazine
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So let's imagine you're stranded on an island, in a forest or any other isolated natural locale of your choice: one of your top priorities will undoubtedly be ensuring you have a proper supply of safe drinking water. But, assuming you've lost your way (or crashed, etc) and now find yourself in said natural locale, you're only likely to have access to sea water or water from a stream or river. What are you to do?
Well, if you happen to have this nifty survival guide lying around, you'll know that boiling water is the most effective way of getting rid of any nasty pathogens that might render your drinking experience, shall we say, "unpleasant." In fact, boiling water is a much better way of obtaining safe drinking water, even when compared to modern marvels like filtering devices or chemical treatments. ...
Guangzhou has been the source of some unusual stories on TreeHugger. First there was the news that 'professional noses' had been employed to track down the source of pollution. The workers had only a three year career, after that their noses were no longer at the top of their game and were forced into retirement.
Now there's an equally oddball story - an organized swim through China's third longest river to celebrate the new, non-polluted river. 3,500 people set off across the water as the Mayor fired a starters pistol. It was organized to celebrate the clean-up, after rapid pollution had left it highly polluted - and highly polluted in China is quite a sight....
We have shown a number of solar powered streetlights before that look more elegant, but this new unit from Sharp has a number of interesting features, including a very directed distribution (helping reduce light pollution), 1800 lumen output and a special earthquake sensor that will make it run for over 48 hours straight if it detects a tremor over 5 on the Richter scale. Build in an alarm system so the panels don't get stolen, or perhaps Wifi, and it's perfect. ::Akihabara News via ::Ubergizmo
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Who hasn't heard this familiar refrain: "Be sure to put on a thick layer of sunscreen before you go out into the sun"? Whether you've heard it from your parents, your doctor, or even that so-called health expert on TV, the need to wear sunscreen to protect your skin is a mantra that has been firmly ingrained into our heads since early childhood. And while that may be true in principle, the problem is that too many sunscreen manufacturers haven't been holding up their part of the bargain by selling products that actually protect you.
Indeed, a rash of recent studies has shown that labels on several popular brands are not only misleading and confusing but, in some cases, completely false. After testing 786 name-brand sunscreens to gauge their stated UVA protection, potential health hazards and stability in sunlight, the Environmental Working Group determined that only 17% of them provide good protection and minimal risks. In addition, the study revealed that 50% of the tested products made claims that would be considered misleading under the FDA's draft sunscreen safety standards....
Witold Rybczynski asks about sustainable design: "does all this really amount to a new type of "green architecture," or "eco-tecture," as the New York Times Magazine inelegantly called it not long ago? Or is green design just the equivalent of better plumbing?" He has been there before- shown above is "a model house that demonstrated a number of energy-saving and environmentally friendly features, built 35 years ago. These included a self-contained toilet, a rooftop solar still to recycle shower water, a wind machine to generate electricity, and a solar oven (in foreground at right). We gratefully accepted Buckminster Fuller's suggestion and christened the house the Ecol Operation."
He has a great slide show covering a history of green building design at ::Slate...
Debunking the arguments of global warming skeptics has become somewhat of a hobby for us here at TreeHugger. Even though the consensus around the issue of climate change has long passed the stage of critical mass, with an overwhelming majority of scientists now embracing the view that anthropogenic influences are contributing to trends in rising global temperatures and sea levels (amongst other things), there still remain a stubborn few who refuse to recognize the facts and accede to reality.
And while we could just as easily continue to expose the fallacy of their conjectures and evidence (and probably will to some extent), we thought it might be interesting to try to understand the methodology behind the madness. Luckily for us, Ian Enting, a professor at Australia's University of Melbourne, has gone ahead and done the work for us....
Andrew Maynard is at it again, with Poop House, his answer to the Australian drought. Water is too valuable to be just something that is just used; he turns it into the main structural element of the building. Thinking that the greenest building is no building at all, the structure is nothing but an inner and outer layer of polyethylene forms. When you build your house you purchase enough water to fill the inner transparent form, which takes the shape of an arch....
TreeHugger has seen examples of growing furniture -- a couple of times, in fact -- but this is an example of furniture that grows with you. Joel Hesselgren's bed, the winner of the Stockholm Furniture Fair 2007, appears to be magically floating (it's supported underneath at the two opposing corners, which also double as end tables), and can also magically double in size. No need for a new frame when you can adjust the one you've got and allow you bed to "grow" with your needs; wouldn't it be great to have a bed that would last you from grade school to retirement and beyond? We aren't sure how the mechanics of it work, exactly, but we know we like it. Hit the jump to see the double-wide version, via ::Freshome and ::Yanko Design...
This Old House looks at GreenGrid, a green roof system that they suggest can be done do-it-yourself. The GreenGrid system is based on a 2 foot by 2 foot plastic container with dimples on the bottom to provide drainage. The GreenGrid site doesn't particularly note that it is for DIYers, so we might point out a few things to worry about:
-it is heavy at 15 to 18 pounds per square foot- can your roof take it?
-how many drains or scuppers do you have? If the soil gets through the filter cloth and the drains get clogged, that can quickly increase the weight on the roof and cause structural failure.
This old house says "everyone loves an option that cuts out extra labor, materials, and middlemen" but sometimes it is nice to hire someone with experience and lots of liability insurance. ::This Old House and ::Green Grid Roofs...
Aviation creates a lot of pollution; carbon and noise. A new report has said that people all over London are being affected by Heathrow airport, even those on the other side of the city, many miles away.
The independent research consultancy, Bureau Veritas, measured noise levels all over the city, and found that it 'dominated the environment'. I used to live in Brixton, south London, and I'm going to agree with them 100% (although joy-riders and sirens also feature prominently in the background noise)....
Wasteful packaging is something that annoys TreeHugger to no end (we had two contests -- one showcasing the worst of it and spotlighting the way to do packaging right); there is simply no reason for excessive packaging, other than laziness and poor, thoughtless design. Thankfully, more and more examples of smart packaging are popping up, and we're excited to add one of the best examples we've seen yet: the lite2go by knoend. The San Francisco-based designers have devised a functional lighting system that uses the packaging as the product, practically eliminating any waste that would ordinarily come with unwrapping or opening the packaging. The outer shell of the package becomes the shade for the lamp, leaving just a cardboard band and some hemp twine, both of which are either easily recycled or composted. "We looked for a way to make lighting 'lighter.' How could a lighting concept be more simple, yet still uplifting and functional? Our answer was to rid the packaging, and include all components needed for illumination. Everything in one neat little package, ready to use off the shelf, ready to go, ready to lite2go!" they say, and we think it's brilliant. More pics and details after the jump....
This story of a worldwide shortage of wind turbines parallels what started happening in early 2006 with a worldwide shortage of the silicon ingots needed for manufacture of solar photovoltaic cells. "A worldwide shortage of wind-turbines has been caused by a sudden surge in demand and the frenzied industrial growth of China creating delivery delays that could take years to rectify. Plans to cut carbon dioxide emissions and meet more of Britain's energy needs by an expansion of offshore wind farms have had to be revised, because experts now believe the chances of building them before 2010 at the earliest is unlikely."
"'There is a worldwide shortage of wind turbines,' said Dr Gordon Edge, director of economics and markets at the British Wind Energy Association, who claimed that a recent series of tax credits introduced in the US for the American wind power industry had sparked a construction boom...'The US industry is going hell for leather at the moment and relying on imports of wind turbines from Europe."...
Well, had we been writing we would have covered this story. Those who think that geo-engineering as a solution to climate change is new, should look back 50 years, where Russian scientist P.M. Borisov met with the Canadian Government to propose building a dam across the Bering Strait. All that ice up north is such an impediment to development:
"If the Arctic ice is once melted much less of the sun's radiation will be reflected out into space and therefore the arctic ice cap will not re-form. An ice-free Arctic Ocean would be a great boon to oceanic shipping, especially between Europe and East Asia. Much land in northern Canada and Siberia would be freed of permafrost and made suitable for agriculture. Borisov believed that an ice-free Arctic Ocean would lead to increased evaporation of water and hence increased rainfall worldwide, including the region of Sahara Desert leading to grass growing there. Borisov considers all of the impacts of the melting of the Arctic ice cap to be beneficial. He asserts that the melting of the Greenland ice cap would raise sea levels at a rate of only 1.5 to 2 mm per year." ...
Atlantic City, New Jersey used to be the place to go when it was hot; it was not too far from New York and was a great vacation spot. In the UK, people used to go to the seaside, the piers, away from the cities by short, convenient train rides. However when plane travel became affordable and fast, the nearby seaside resorts all faded away.
Now, in the UK anyways, they are enjoying a revival as people look for ways to vacation closer to home, and top designers are moving in to make these tired old seasides more interesting and viable. They are demonstrating, like Gehry did in Bilbao, how good architecture is transformative.
The coolest intervention is Thomas Heatherwick's East Beach Cafe in Littlehampton. Stephen Bayley in the Observer said "Apart from being a pleasure in its own right, the ambition is that the East Beach Cafe might be the grit that forms a pearl, beginning a cultural and social revival of the sadly neglected South Coast. Before Heatherwick, Littlehampton had been a frankly dismal final chapter in the terrible history of the English seaside." ...
Think about the reasons that you use energy. At first you might think that you consume power and goods in order to keep you alive and sustain yourself. However, humans could survive with only a small amount of locally grown food, and minimal heating. In fact, most of our energy consumption simply serves to make life better; more comfortable and more enjoyable.
Therefore, the ratio of happiness to power consumption is a useful metric to measure. It isn't the most quantifiable thing, but the New Economics Foundation (Nef) attempt just that with their Happy Planet Index (HPI). They recently published a report that measures people's opinions on how happy they are, their life expectancy and their carbon footprint in order to see if more energy usage means happier citizens. It doesn't....
We talk often about how energy efficient New York is on a per capita basis but in the New York Times, the director of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability admits“ The main reason that New Yorkers use much less electricity is that our apartments are so much smaller” than homes in other cities. Most of the buildings are still energy hogs, and emit 80% of the City's greenhouse gases.
Now Mayor Bloomberg has introduced a plan to reduce emissions by 30% by 2030. However 85% of the buildings that will exist then are already standing and need to be retrofitted.
Some things are cheap (fluorescent bulbs) and others take longer for a payback, but Ashok Gupta of the National Resources Defense Council makes a very good point that environmentalists (and TreeHugger) sell themselves short by focusing on payback periods. “Nobody asks what the payback period is for a marble lobby.” Full illustration below fold and article at ::New York Times
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We apologize for the bad pun in the title, sometimes it's just hard to resist. Fair trade is a familiar concept to our readers. Aside from writing about well-known fair trade commodities like chocolate and coffee, we’ve also seen posts on everything from fair trade sports gear and sneakers, to the possibility of setting up fair trade standards for aquarium fish. Now we can add another commodity to our list, cashew nuts. Just Cashews is a business unit of a non-profit organization called Earth Hero, and is dedicated to working with farmers to sell fairly traded cashews:
Is that a flower…or a "giant phallus"? In San Diego, "organic" design takes on a whole new meaning with the heated controversy over a proposed green 40-story residential tower.
“If it looks like a phallic symbol, someone has a strange perception,” says Sandor Shapery, the San Diego-based developer behind the design. “You can find sex anywhere if you want to...There's just some sick people out there.”
But architect Gwynne Pugh--of the internationally-renowned firm Pugh + Scarpa--has a different vision. He was hired by the downtown redevelopment agency to review the city's new building designs.
“With its rounded forms and swelling of the uppermost floors...this building structure is very phallic," he says.
Unfortunately, the tower's design is essential to energy conservation goals, which include recycling water from the cooling system for use in the swimming pool, laundry, and irrigation.
Shapery now plans to make some modifications before the proposal is reviewed again. Thanks tipster Mark. via ::SignonSanDiego More on Pugh + Scarpa ::New Future for Solar Panels ::Dwell Home II See also this phallic solar plant and the Rorschach Inkblot Test....
Ever wanted to find a fun, interesting way to get kids to consider the implications of their action, particularly in regards to global warming? Well, that's the idea behind this latest enviro-game for kids, where the decisions they make in the beginning can have powerful repercussions for their character down the road. The game itself is the brainchild of a husband and wife development team in France who came home one day to find a dumping company setting up an immense landfill next to their home in Burgundy. That really hit home and got them thinking about the environment, and ways they could get kids involved protecting the planet using their given talents as software developers.
Using the experience of having a landfill set up next to their home in the real world, they’ve worked it into the game as kids need to work with a “hero” of their choice to help stop the dump company and save the planet by choosing strategic, earth-friendly behavior “cards” which then have an impact on their character’s life in the game. Of course, decisions are not always easy, as in the real world where balancing a multitude of needs and interests often makes the best decision difficult to reach. Along the way kids will get to learn more about various environmental subjects. Those include waste, chemicals, CO2 emissions, self-sufficiency, and the availability of water. And for the moment they’re offering a limited but free download of the game as a trial run, so if it sounds like fun to you head here and give it a shot.
via:: Jasmin Malik Chua...
This is the month for celebrities to show their stuff in support of climate change. Many are advocating political action to pressure governments to act. First we had Live Earth and now it's the Big Ask, an on-line petition. Started by Friends of the Earth, the campaign hopes to force the government to cut CO2 emissions by three per cent each year. A recent survey revealed that over two thirds of people in the UK want the Government to introduce a new law requiring carbon dioxide emissions to be cut annually.
Celebrities attaching their name and You-Tube clip to the cause include Jude Law, James Blunt and Gillian Anderson. So far 171,432 people have participated by using their camera or mobile phone to record a short video clip of themselves asking their MP to support the campaign. When they join the march, their MP will automatically receive a link to the recording. All of them can be viewed at the good looking website. :: The Big Ask Via :: the london paper...
Many of us will agree that Buckminster Fuller was way ahead of the crowd with his thinking on sustainability and eco-friendly designs. In his time he was considered an eccentric inventor with impractical ideas, now we think he's a genius! Not all of us can be ahead of our time, but we can at least try to be in our time. Here is a chance for people to catch up with Bucky's thinking, be inspired by his work and take the opportunity to address prevalent issues in contemporary society. The Buckminster Fuller Institute has launched a Challenge for, "Design science solutions... that exemplify the trimtab principle." The trimtab principal can be used to describe, "An artifact, or system, specifically designed and placed in the environment at such a time, in such a place, where its effects would be maximized, thereby effecting the most advantageous change with the least resources, time and energy. Doing more with less." ...
"The practice of inter-cropping — which Chinese farmers have practiced for thousands of years — involves growing two or more crops in alternate rows in the same place and at same time, and can greatly increase grain yields. Li Long, Zhang Fusuo and colleagues at China Agricultural University looked at below-ground biological interactions between faba bean and maize...
They carried out field trials in the western Chinese province of Gansu over four years, and showed that inter-cropping with faba bean increased the maize yield by an average of 43 per cent." Faba bean yield also increased significantly.
"The researchers found that the roots of the faba bean plant released organic acids into the soil, which increases the solubility of inorganic phosphorus, a plant nutrient. Plants take up soluble phosphorus more readily, which explains the increase in the crops' yields."...
(Angra 1 and 2 nuclear plants, in Angra dos Reis, Rio de Janeiro) The Brazilian Energetic Policy Council approved recently the construction the country’s third nuclear plant, Angra 3: a project that was paralyzed for over 20 years for lack of funding. According to Spanish BBC, Brazilian president Luis Inacio Lula da Silva had declared in the past his wish to increase the country nuclear capacity in fear of an energetic shortage, and some sectors had urged the government to accelerate the construction of nuclear plants, some of them for the jobs it would bring. Brazilian dependence on hydroelectric generators could cause electricity shortage by the end of this decade if the rains slow down, the media informed. The construction of Angra 3 could cost over 3,500 million dollars, and if finally approved by the president, would be completed in 2013, increasing the energetic capacity in 1,300 megawatts. The plant is supposed to be placed in Angra dos Reis, a city from the south of Rio de Janeiro, where the other two centrals are located. In order to secure the construction of the plant, the project has to be approved by the Brazilian Environment and Natural Resources Institute (IBAMA), which is under the Environment Ministry, and that previously voted against the plan. This was not the only organism to take part against the project.
Via Spanish BBC...
Nitrogen can be a problem- especially for farmers. Although our atmosphere is full of nitrogen gas (N2), the bond between the two nitrogen atoms is so strong that the molecule is virtually inert. But life needs nitrogen to grow - in fact all life requires nitrogen to be pulled apart and react. Which is why we throw excesses of fertilizers (much of it petroleum derived), onto our fields and crops every year- to encourage growth.
In nature, legumes have been the typical model for how plants can 'fix' nitrogen. Soybean, peas, ground nuts, alfalfa, clover are all common plants that associate with bacteria in their root systems to 'fix' nitrogen. The symbiosis between these plants and bacteria allows them grow in nitrogen depleted areas, as well as have the potential to increase nitrogen content of the soil. The planting of legumes can even be used for ecological, or field restoration. But the legume crops studied have mostly been limited to temperate climates.
Now a new type of nitrogen fixing symbiotic relationship has been discovered with important potential for tropical and temperate agriculture, as well as reducing our excessive use of petroleum derived fertilizers. ...
More and more eco-hotels are opening up around the world, like the no frills eco-chic one (soon to be) in Montreal, the one planned for NYC or the Brando for holidays on a green paradise island. If you’re looking for eco accommodation in Europe, check out the Austrian BioHotels, promoters of the first bio hotel recognised by The European Community in Spain. This bio aparthotel is called Venus Albir and you can find it on the Costa Blanca. The main idea behind this tourist complex is the geo/bio construction which included building with local and natural materials such as thermal clay blocks, marble, cork insulation, ecological paints, wooden furniture, cotton sheets and latex mattresses. Solar panels to heat the water, rainwater collectors to water the plants and last but not least: the organic restaurant form part of this eco project. Prices vary depending on the season and lie between €47 and €80 for a double room, with special prices for families. For more information check out their web site, blog and videos where you can start with a virtual tour of the bio hotel. ::Venus Albir ::via EcoHabitar...
What an eye Charley Harper had! And what style! Best known for his mid-century-modernist wildlife illustrations, which appeared in myriad books, magazines, posters, and prints, the Cincinnati-based artist most visibly plied his craft in the pages of The Golden Book of Biology (1962), as well as a series of posters for the U.S. National Park Service, the National Audubon Society, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and other nature-related organizations.
He passed away on June 10 after a long battle with pneumonia. :: Treadway Gallery and The Enquirer
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With growing international pressure to cut its overall greenhouse gas emissions, Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh announced on Friday that the government will take steps to developing a comprehensive national policy on climate change issues.
The declaration came after an inauguration meeting of Delhi’s National Council on Climate Change. The government’s aim is to lay the groundwork for a clear strategy in anticipation of an important United Nations climate change meeting in Bali in December, but without setting any specific emissions targets.
The goal of December’s summit is to hammer out an agreement that will replace the Kyoto Protocol, which lapses in 2012.
A national afforestation plan for 15 million acres will also be launched August 15th (though as TH reported last week, the government plans could involve leasing areas for reforestation to private interests in order to meet a growing demand for paper products)....
After tackling the issue of aquaculture a few weeks ago, Columbia University's Jeffrey Sachs is back to weigh in on one of his latest eco-initiatives: unleashing a green revolution in Africa by using the powers of risk management. Central to his essay is the argument that since life in poor, developing African nations is often fraught with considerable risk (households lacking health insurance, diversified income revenues and crop failure insurance, amongst others), farmers need to have the proper financial tools at their disposal to improve their odds and, hopefully, lives.
A simple disturbance, such as a temporary drought or disease (conditions that will likely worsen and become more frequent with the gradual onset of global warming), could be enough to knock an African household off its feet and into debt, or worse. Therefore, Sachs explains that proper risk management is critical to the farmers' well-being and their financial viability since it increases their creditworthiness and thus allows them to make investments in high-yield activities such as higher value-added farming (using fertilizer to plant their crops). Engaging in these activities greatly diminishes the likelihood that a farmer will fall into poverty. ...
Dee Williams wanted "a simpler life, time, more money. I don't have a mortgage. I don't have a big utility bill." So she built herself an 84 square foot house- "Not much to it. Simple. Small. A dream house tinier than a parking spot." Her monthly heating bill is $6 bucks and electricity is free from the solar panels.
Dee built the tiny cabin herself out of salvaged material. She picked the door out of a dumpster and retrieved the floors from a house fire. Dee's new tiny home sits in her friend's backyard.
To our eye it looks suspiciously like Jay Shafer's Tumbleweed Home but no credit is given in the article or video; . Nonetheless Dee is happy in her home. "Right now there's nowhere else I want to be!" Watch the video at ::Katu.com
UPDATE: As I said above, there was no reference on anything that I could find that said that Dee Williams was a customer of Tumbleweed Homes. As an architect I believe that credit to designers is important and wanted to make a point of it; knockoffs are rampant. The day I did the post I emailed Tumbleweed Homes, who I admire and have done a number of posts on, to confirm that she was a customer and never got a reply. Today I received an email accusing me of " biased, inept and/or skewed reporting." Biased I admit to: designers deserve credit. Skewed? perhaps. Inept? I tried and could find nothing. In the end unless someone gives credit where credit is due they deserved to be called on it. I support and promote designers like Jay Shafer and will continue to do so.
UPDATE 2: Tumbleweed Homes responded to my request saying "Dee actually did purchase her plans from Jay, and is one of his biggest fans. She also created her home with specialty green materials which she did on her own."
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We first met environmental artist Laurie Tumer while writing an article for Grist; plus we posted about her here. Not long ago, we dropped her a line, asking what’s new and she returned with this brilliant update on her experience at the last Ecological Farming Conference. Here is her guest post. Some of her new photography is posted for your viewing pleasure. All of her images are copyrighted, so please do not copy or use them in another forum without Laurie Tumer's permission.
It doesn't take a lot to get a house rated for Energy Star; it only has to be at least 15% more efficient than the standard 2004 Building Code (the minimum standard one can build to) and have other energy-saving features to bring them up to 20 to 30% more efficient. It is not a big deal.
But the EPA is patting itself on the back because last year 12% of houses qualified. "EPA is pleased to see builders in so many states leading the effort to offer their customers high-efficiency, low-emission choices in new homes."
So 88% of houses are built to a standard developed before anyone was thinking seriously about the 17% of greenhouse gases and 21% of energy consumption that comes from houses.
This is a scandal. Energy Star should be compulsory in every new house built in the United States and Canada right now. The customers get it back in better performance and lower utility bills; If the developers complain that this makes the prices higher and affects affordability, let them build smaller houses. 12% is an embarrassment, not something to be proud of. ::EPA via ::Green Wombat...
Burda style is a website dedicated to sewing clothing, techniques, patterns and how-tos. All you need to to do is download the patterns and follow the directions. Its a great resource for DIYers, Nikki, the powerhouse behind .... has a tutorial on how to turn men's old shirts into funky fitted shirts suitable for a woman's shape. TreeHugger previous posts on refashion includes t-shirts and sweaters
::Burda style::Recycled shirt tutorial...
This week is Carnival of the Green # 86 and it's being hosted by The AIDG Blog (that's Appropriate Infrastructure Development Group). So, head on over to this week's Carnival to check out a round up of last week's green news and events, submitted by other bloggers and green sites. To learn more about Carnival of the Green, where it will be and how to host (hurry, we're now booking into 2008 and only have 25 dates left!), please click here to link to our previous post....
Swimming for the environment seems to becoming more fashionable these days. After British swimmer Lewis Gordon Pugh led the way yesterday with a 1 km swim across the frigid Arctic waters (-1.8°C) to raise awareness about climate change, former Lithuanian triathlete Vidmantas Urbonas is looking to call attention to the Baltic Sea's deteriorating condition by becoming the first person to swim across it.
His swim will begin on July 22 in Kalmar, Sweden, and will end in Pavilosta, Latvia, almost 130 miles away (209 km). It could last as long as 8 days, depending on the weather, or as little as 4-5 days if he chooses to swim non-stop. "I'm not doing it just to prove I can swim across the sea. With the swim I want to draw the attention of people around the sea to its condition, which is catastrophic," he said. He plans on splitting the swim into three separate legs: the first 7 km leg will take him from Kalmar to the island of Oland, the second 57 km leg will take him to Gotland, and the final 145 km leg will bring him to Pavilosta....
Like the Tong Lamp, the first thing we saw when looking at Ilaria Marelli's Fiocco "Chair" (it's more of a nest, really) was "Wow, that's cool. I'll bet I could make something like that." Like many of the things that catch TreeHugger's eye, it's "made with ageing and vanishing recycled material", meaning there's no reason you couldn't create your own from an excess of anything soft and cozy you have laying around or have ready access to (it looks like the gray half of this is made from carpet pads). ...
Those of you who spend part of your daily routines roaming the virtual landscapes in Second Life might find Second Chance Trees, an endeavor dedicated to supporting reforestation efforts, worth checking out. In essence, Second Chance Trees, a joint collaboration between the nonprofit organization Plant-It 2020 and the social media marketing group Converseon, manifests itself as an island in Second Life where you can buy and plant one of 10 species of endangered trees.
For the equivalent of 300 lindens (the in-game currency), or about $1.50, users can purchase and plant a tree on a designated virtual island in the game. At the same time, Plant-It 2020, which will receive all of the proceeds from the sale, will plant an equivalent tree in the particular endangered rain forest to which it is indigenous. "Our Second Chance Tree Project is an innovative way to allow individuals to immersively participate in a reforestation initiative by connecting their virtual world to a real world action," said Rob Key, CEO of Converseon....
Where we live the market has twice as many people, including well-dressed matrons who push to the front of the line and say "I want all of it!" Vendors who buy retail from other vendors who still have stock and resell at a higher price, because with the rich ladies moving in, price is irrelevant; what is important is to say "I bought it from a lovely farmer." Vendors who refuse to sell to rude and pushy people they have not seen before. A less satisfactory experience than it used to be.
Seth Godin says that the same thing is happening in New York:
"The market in my town is now twice as big as it was just last year. New vendors sell muffins, cookies, muffins, cheese, muffins, and yes, frozen risotto cakes in their own disposable plastic tray. Somewhere along the way, the farmer part got left behind.
This brings out tons of people, consumers who would rather buy a sandwich than a zucchini. It's the normal progression of things--from the edgy early adopter who seeks purity and novelty above all things, all the way through the early majority and then the mass market. As the market grows, it gets, by definition, more average. Until, as Yogi Berra says, "no one goes there, it's too crowded." more in ::Seth Godin...
Matt Beard, at a federal laboratory in Golden, Colo., is among scientists trying to cut solar energy costs.
The New York Times says that an hour’s worth of the sunlight bathing the planet held far more energy than humans worldwide could use in a year, and the first practical devices for converting light to electricity were designed more than half a century ago.
Andrew Revkin and Matthew Wald write: Yet research on solar power and methods for storing intermittent energy has long received less spending, both in the United States and in other industrialized countries, than energy options with more political support. In the United States, the Energy Department plans to spend $159 million on solar research and development. It will spend nearly double, $303 million, on nuclear energy research and development, and nearly triple, $427 million, on coal, as well as $167 million on other fossil fuel research and development.
In the battle for money from Washington, solar lobbyists say they are outgunned by their counterparts representing coal, corn and the atom. “Coal and nuclear count their lobbying budgets in the tens of millions,” said Rhone Resch, president of the Solar Energy Industries Association. “We count ours in the tens of thousands.”
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File this one under the "Wouldn't it be great in real life" section: designer Maxim Velcovsky's Factory Vase turns the iconic, industrial form of a power plant into an ironic, modern design. Instead of belching spent coal emissions from its smokestack, delicate, colorful flowers emerge, providing a timely, dramatic reminder of global warming in "an engaging and eye-catching form." To take the irony one step further, there was probably some coal-fired (or other "dirty" power source) power that went into firing the porcelain, unless Velcovsky has taken a page from Esque's book. The constant reminder that our world is persistently warming will set you back $99, at ::Generate via ::Freshome...
There is no doubt that cars offer a great deal of benefits, both to individuals and society, in terms of increased mobility and personal freedom. Having said that, anyone reading TreeHugger will also be keenly aware of the negatives, and we’re not just talking about greenhouse gases here. Urban sprawl, poor local air quality, drastically reduced road safety, increased noise, and the decreased walkability of our communities can all be traced back to excessive car use. Fortunately, people are beginning to think beyond their simple ‘cars good’, or ‘cars bad’ positions, and are seeking to find ways for society to enjoy the best of both worlds – the use of private cars when necessary, while still reducing overall traffic, noise and emissions. Approaches range from car clubs, to ride sharing, to promoting liveable, walkable neighborhoods. Now we’ve come across Carplus, a UK-based national charity promoting sustainable transport solutions and ‘responsible car use’. Carplus works to encourage and promote creative responses to current transport related problems:
We love sheds, they have become a popular way to get a little privacy and extra space, and a great way for architects and designers to show their talents on small, affordable projects. Now there is an open Line of Sight competition to for the design of a shed of about fifty square feet, closing on August 3. It is a fun little competition with "Fabulous prizes" athough they are not specific, but given the sponsors, it could be from SONY or perhaps some Google stock. The organizers say "we're aiming to tickle those imaginative taste buds with a stimulating design challenge ... This, we hope, will occupy your mind as you strive to fill those balmy summer days (for those of us in the northern hemisphere) spent idling on the beach."...
For anyone who didn't get enough reading chair/book shelf mashup from last week's Bookinist, here's a slightly more overt combo. Bibiochaise and Bibiopouf come from Italian designers nobody & co eschew the reading light, notebook storage and pencil sharpener for straight-up shelves, storing "5 metres of books". We aren't sure how they measure books, but it's a cool, artful way to store your books, show off your collection, and always have them within arms reach. After the jump: the geometric, oddly naked, empty Bibliochaise. ::nobody & co via ::Shedworking...
And we thought movie popcorn was so expensive because the theater owners hosed us and sold us a bag worth three cents and a pop worth five cents for nine bucks because they could. Now we find out that the poor guys are crying in their Coke because ethanol is driving up corn prices. "I've never seen something quite like this," said American Pop Corn [maker of Jolly Time] president Garrett Smith, who's been in the business for three decades. He had to pay farmers almost 70 per cent more this spring than last year to grow his popcorn and has had to boost prices for movie theatre popcorn and jars of unpopped corn.
Mr. Smith is being walloped by higher soy prices as well, the second-biggest ingredient the company uses. Those prices have been rising too as farmers switch into corn crops. "It's a double whammy," he says. "It's a tough thing if you're trying to buy an alternative crop like we are." ::Globe and Mail
UPDATE: It's hitting our ice cream too! ...
(Picture: snow falls over the obelisk, in the center of Buenos Aires. From Clarin.) The last anniversary of Argentine independence, July 9th, came with a surprise: for the first time in almost 90 years, snow fell in Buenos Aires and the city’s suburbs. While mostly everybody was thrilled with the spectacle, we (and few media) wondered about how dangerous the phenomenon could be. Fortunately, local specialists explained this was an isolated phenomenon, but warned about the consequences of a changing climate. Argentine meteorologist Osvaldo Canziani, president of one of the sections in the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change (IPCC), explained to Clarin newspaper, “warming can produce cooling, but in this case it is not global warming the cause of this storm”. The specialist continued: “In September 1951 I worked in the international airport and we had a similar problem, of more intensity though it did not snow: a polar air mass from Antarctica invades the South of South America.......
"Imagine a day when you will go online and buy a pass to drive into any major urban area and the price of your pass will be set by whether you are driving a hybrid or a Hummer, the time of day you want to drive, the road you want to use and how much carbon your car trip will emit." That day is here in London and Stockholm and may be coming to New York, and Thomas Friedman loves the idea. "It is already proving to be the most effective short-term way to clean up polluted city air, promote energy efficiency and create more livable urban centers, while also providing mayors with unexpected new revenue." and lets the rich folk get to their offices faster while improving bus service for everyone else by keeping the riffraff off the roads.
He points out that Stockholm's system is built and run by IBM, and that the way to rebuild America's industrial sector is to create green collar jobs that are more difficult to outsource. "Which jobs are most easily outsourced? The ones vulnerable to cheap labor. Which jobs are hardest to outsource? Those that require a lot of knowledge." Worth reading (although a little bit too much green flagwaving, as is Friedman's wont) at the ::New York Times and read also Charles Komanoff in ::Grist....
Recently we learned that schools in parts of Canada were going to be focusing on the environment by incorporating it into the curriculum at every grade level. That was clearly great news, but I pointed out that an edict from on high can mean many things in a bureaucracy as vast and complex as a school system. The biggest challenge that I can see to that initiative will come from getting teachers to actually be able to integrate it in meaningful ways into the classrooms, especially when so many people are just becoming aware of the necessity of going green to begin with, teachers included.
And now there’s a study in Israel that shows huge gaps in that country between the declarations about the purpose and extent of environmental education and its actual implementation in the classroom. According to one of the study’s authors, Prof. Alon Tal, there are substantial gaps in knowledge among pupils concerning various environmental subjects, and they are not familiar with the most basic issues. The report's conclusions state that most local pupils have not been exposed to the subjects in question in a productive way. There are very few updated materials on ecological issues, and curricula rarely include a practical component like helping to improve the environment in the school vicinity. In questionnaires given to the student body, many answered only half or fewer of the questions correctly.
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"Nearly 3,000 Ohioans and about 500,000 other Americans are already employed by industries assembling or making parts for renewable-energy equipment such as wind turbines, solar panels and ethanol, economist Roger Bezdek reported in a comprehensive study released Thursday. It was commissioned by the [Solar] Society and the Ohio Department of Development. These industries recorded nearly $1 trillion in gross revenues in 2006, including about $51 billion in Ohio."
"The job and revenue numbers could skyrocket over the next 25 years - resulting in up to 2.2 million new jobs and $220 billion in annual revenues in Ohio and up to 40 million jobs and $4.5 trillion in revenues nationwide - if federal and state governments would make an all-out push for renewables and super-efficient products, the report argues."...
"Why is it prohibited? asked the savage....The controller shrugged his shoulders. "Because it is old, that's the chief reason. We haven't any use for old things here."
"Even when they are beautiful?"
"Particularly when they are beautiful. Beauty's attractive, and we don't want people attracted by old things. We want them to like new ones."
Giles Slade quotes Aldous Huxley from Brave New World's brilliant attack on consumerism, in "Made to Break": Technology and Obsolescence in America, about the design and marketing of goods to encourage their replacement. George Bush was not far off when asked what people should do after 9/11, he said "go shopping." -that has been the message in America since World War 1, when store keepers put up signs saying "Clear the Track for Prosperity." Building to last was counterproductive, as Henry Ford learned at great cost from General Motors, who introduced annual model changes and almost wiped him out. From its beginnings in shirt collars and razor blades, our disposable culture with rapidly changing styles and technology is creating a mountain of waste that will bury us.
Slade was asked by a reviewer at Grist: How do we undo this cycle of consumption? "A lot of really sophisticated people devoted a lot of time and thought to developing this system," he says. "We need to look at the problem creatively and rethink it. Our whole economy is based on buying, trashing, and buying again. We need to rethink industrial design." ...
The book that explains what motivates us to buy new things; It is perhaps a bit weak in the later sections about modern technology and computers in particular, but nobody can argue with his conclusion "The golden age of obsolescence -- the heyday of nylons, tailfins, and transistor radios -- will go the way of the buffalo." ::Made to Break...
A little while back TreeHugger posted news of the Greater Good campaign, a new initiative being spearheaded by natural body care pioneers Burt’s Bees. The idea behind the campaign is to clear up once and for all the fuzzy definitions of ‘natural’ when it comes to personal care products. The initiative is setting out to win support across the industry for a tighter definition of what can, and can not, be described as a natural product, and to raise awareness among consumers, both through education, and through the promotion of a recognized and regulated standard and corresponding seal that could go on all approved products. Given the importance of such an initiative, both to the industry, and to consumers, we thought we should get in touch with Burt’s Bees to find out more. The following interview with Mike Indursky, the company’s Chief Marketing Officer, sets out the reasoning behind the campaign, explores how companies across the industry are reacting, and discusses whether voluntary regulation is enough. We also get some more details of Mike’s views on the dangers of non-natural ingredients in personal care products, we hear a bit about Burt’s Bees wider sustainability agenda, and we even find out a little more about the mysterious Burt.
TreeHugger: In launching the Greater Good campaign, Burt's Bees is taking a very pro-active, even aggressive, stance on the issue of what can be defined as 'natural' when it comes to personal care. Why is this such an important issue for you, and for consumers in general? ...
TreeHugger has mentioned the concept of downloadable design many a time before, with good reason. It's a great way to localize product manufacturing and cut down the distance and time (and carbon footprint) of everything needs to get to you. Unfortunately, to this point, a lot of the downloadable designs have been pretty small and simple; because we're limited to printing on a flat piece of paper, it's tough to make something like a (full-size) chair or table. For everyone else who doesn't have a workshop of their own, there's Ponoko. The New Zealand-based company helps you upload your own digital design, find a local manufacturer to create it and then send it back to you. Burgeoning designers can also submit and then sell their designs to other Ponoko users, who then in turn have it manufactured locally to them. The system is still in beta, so we aren't sure how everything works, but it's a terrifically intriguing idea and seems to be a great way to put design within reach of everyone and give furniture design a little open-source twist. If you've got some designs ready to unleash on the world, sign up to help them test, check out some examples in their blog and stay tuned for more. ::Ponoko via ::Core77...
Sarah Hood makes use of real flowers, petals, magnolia leaves, eucalyptus and acorns and turns them into exquisite necklaces, bracelets and rings. The one pictured is made of sterling silver and chinese lantern pods, the most delicate of plants. Another necklace is made of acorns, hanging in a row, and capped with silver, also available as a bracelet. She makes a living ring with a little spider plant or cactus growing out of it. How they will all last and not rot or be crushed is another story. As an extra-special baby gift, there is a silver spoon (what else) with a handle cast from real garden vegetables and "Eat Your Vegetables" imprinted on the spoon part.
The designer is interested in how things decompose. She has "a desire to embrace the impermanence of the natural world around me. Rather than lamenting the transience of life, this jewelry celebrates it, transforming decay into beauty and lyricism, fragility into a strength of purpose." Hood is a Buddhist and the work is clearly influenced by the idea of the impermanence and the transiency of life as well as the importance of the moment. :: Sarah Hood Via :: Inhabitat...
Preferring non-toxic finishes and glues, natural rubber latex foam cushions, certified sustainable hardwoods and reclaimed woods, Chicago's Verde Design Studio starts with their name and makes it greener from there. Both starting from scratch and reclaiming and modernizing vintage furniture, the studio makes everything by hand, right there in Chicago. The current collection includes case goods, sofas (the "Gaylord" sofa is above), tables, chairs, rugs, wallcoverings and select vintage pieces, all with a sleek modern edge. Says designer Michele Fitzpatrick, "Just because something is renewable doesn't mean it's abundant," she says; as such, she avoids overused materials like the trendy, renewable-yet-not-abundant Macassar ebony wood. Verde also has plans to expand into the hospitality genre, with a new collection due out this summer. Stay tuned for more and hit the jump for more pics of their work. ::Verde Design Studio via ::Apartment Therapy: Chicago...
Kenny asked the question "would you rather see the family next door have 5 kids while behaving like the Corbets [a large but "model green" family] in every other way, or prefer to see them have just 2 kids of their own while spending like crazy and doing nothing else to reduce their environmental footprint?" and there was controversy in the comments.
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"Hoping to stabilize a $150 million annual electricity bill, Houston officials have negotiated a contract to ensure that a third of the city's power is generated by wind." If approved by the City Council, the contract would make Houston a renewable energy leader among cities.
"The mandate for wind as part of the annual 1.3 billion kilowatt hours needed to power city buildings, street lights and water plants comes from Mayor Bill White [pictured], who has made energy conservation a theme of his tenure."
""It puts us in a definite leadership position," said White, a former chief operating officer at the U.S. Department of Energy during the Clinton administration. "We are ahead of the curve."" (And ahead of the Federal Government we might add.) "The mayor sought the changes after hurricanes Katrina and Rita disrupted the production and delivery of natural gas — a common fuel at Texas power plants — prompting electricity prices to soar."
Via: Houston Chronicle Image credit:: Mayor Bill White in biking spandex gear, Lone Star Times...
Opposition to national mandates requiring energy utilities to move towards using cleaner renewable energy have typically come from two quarters: said energy utilities and a predictable group of Southern legislators. When you consider that 6 of the country's 10 largest emitters of carbon dioxide are coal-fired power plants in southern states, this all begins to make a bit more sense.
A coalition of southern Republican senators contributed about half the votes necessary to kill a bill that would've required utilities to obtain 15% of their electricity from renewable energy sources by 2020. They've tried to defend their position by claiming that the South, unlike the West and Southwest, is not amenable to solar or wind power. Because these senators have continued to drag their feet and, in so doing, brought the Congress to a virtual standstill on national clean energy legislation, many states have taken the lead in adopting their own mandates (almost half to date). One notable exception: Texas. ...
Back in January Jeff posted on the commitment made by Abbott Labs, a large, US-headquartered company, to green its corporate fleet. Nice move Abbott. Half way through 2007, the overall corporate stage setting changed dramatically, with prominent climate skeptics increasingly ignored by the media. Even better news: more US corporations started strutting their green stuff, some even hiring VP's of Sustainability, and the like, to lead the way on climate policy and green design.
Continuing with our example of this trend:- Abbott Labs as described in a recent press release, has finished greening its fleet to "carbon neutrality" and is taking on new green challenges:- "ABBOTT PARK, Ill. - July 11, 2007 — Abbott, the global health care company, announced today that it is the first FORTUNE 500 company to go "carbon neutral" with its entire U.S. fleet of company sales vehicles. At an environmental summit today in Chicago, Abbott also unveiled its new Global Energy Policy and announced the installation of a large, 500-kilowatt hour solar power system to produce electricity for parts of a manufacturing plant in southern California." Details below....
As we've continually tried to show you on TreeHugger, taking the necessary steps to conserve energy doesn't have to be an arduous, expensive ordeal. In fact, quite the contrary: it can be a cheap (or even free), rewarding and ultimately enlightening experience.
Now that we are in the midst of the dog days of summer and hitting record highs in several parts of the country, saving energy on cooling has become more important than ever. Fortunately, the fine folks at Flex Your Power have just released a comprehensive list of mostly cheap and free energy saving tips that should go a long ways towards making your summer a bit more bearable (and lighter on the wallet). Some highlights after the jump....
It used to be that filling up one's gas tank with waste vegetable oil was considered a very niche, potentially costly, practice. INOV8, a company based in La Crosse, Wisconsin, is aiming to change that perception and bring vegetable oil a little bit more into the mainstream by opening up one of the first recycling and filling stations in the Midwest.
Though vegetable oil is already widely used in several countries, most prominently in Germany, it has only recently begun to make headway in the United States' burgeoning alternative fuels market. This is mainly due to the fact that the U.S. lacks the necessary infrastructure to make vegetable oil a sufficiently plentiful and viable source of renewable energy. "We've been encouraging people to convert to vegetable oil, and when they've asked about fuel availability, we've said, well, get ready to go Dumpster-diving," said Taavi McMahon, a lawyer and the president of a biofuels cooperative in Madison....
Is Mackey too wacky to be CEO of Whole Foods?—that's the question the media is trotting out in the wake of the Wall Street Journal's recent disclosure that John P. Mackey has couched behind an online alter ego for the past seven years.
Using the handle "Rahodeb," an anagram of his wife Deborah's name, the vegan, organic-food-loving co-founder of the largest natural-foods chain typed out a voluminous 1,100-plus entries on Yahoo Finance's bulletin board, playing cheerleader to his own company, while occasionally skewering its rival, Wild Oats Markets, which Whole Foods is currently in the process of acquiring.
Was Mackey simply employing standard Machiavellian business practices or is he just plain quackers?...
Like other eco-topics -- climate change, species endangerment, ocean ecosystem collapse -- Peak Oil has had it's share of detractors. Some cite Russian research claiming a geological mechanism is replenishing stores. Others contend that our supplies are so vast that they might as well be infinite. Regardless of their camp, skeptics of the peak oil concept have had to draw from a shrinking pool of watchdog groups for studies which matched their assertions.
Last week, that pool got a whole lot smaller, as the International Energy Agency, a major international petroleum market assessment group released their "Medium Term Oil Market Report"....
You just gotta love Modern Mechanix for finding these things.
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Sainsbury’s, the major UK supermarket chain, have not got too much coverage on TreeHugger so far, at least compared to their arch-rivals Tesco. Sure, we’ve covered their range of artist-designed reusable bags before, and their one day ban on plastic bags also got them some headlines. However, a quick search of our archives suggests that their goal of achieving 25% cuts in CO2 emissions by 2012 has yet to be covered by us. So far, highlights of this program have included a conversion to FSC certified sources for non-recycled own brand paper products, and a conversion of a fifth of the company’s online delivery fleet to electric vehicles.
Perhaps the most intriguing development in Sainsbury’s attempts to go green is their recent trial of using barges on the river Thames to deliver goods to central London stores [N.B. The picture above is not of the store in question. It does prove they have stores by canals though]. Apparently the intiative could save as many as 350,000 kilometers worth of truck journeys per years, were it to be rolled out as standard practice for the company’s London stores. It doesn’t end there, however, as the supermarket is also experimenting with delivering Scottish mineral water and Italian wine by rail. ::Sainsbury’s:: via The Globe and Mail::
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No streetfront garages, there is a back lane system
Jacob described the plans for Canada's greenest suburb, Drake Landing, last year. It is in Okotoks, a half hour south of that Radiant City, Calgary. Now it is built and while it looks a little barren without the trees in, Patrick White of the Globe and Mail visited it and was impressed. he writes:
Drake Landing sold out soon after construction was announced in 2005, with buyers coming from as far away as Seattle and Quebec. The homes were originally slated to sell for less than $300,000, but with the Okotoks real-estate market booming, the new homes are being resold for closer to half a million dollars.
They have attracted a few dozen families whose ecological orientation binds residents more than neighbours in most suburbs. On a recent weekday afternoon, neighbours chatted over their fences, swapping tips on tweaking home furnaces for efficiency, and xeriscaping, a landscaping method that minimizes water use.
"There's definitely an us-versus-the-world mentality here," says Maria Cameron, a stay-at-home mom. "We're all a little different here."...
The start of a new Sunday series where we dig into the archives.
Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose. Trolling two year old archives is surprising for how many posts cover Exxon, modern prefab, solar messenger bags and yes, organic T's.
Yet much has changed. I have not put a tiger in my tank in two years, and like so many others, I have gone gaga over the hundred mile diet. Two years ago Mike did our very first post on it, coverage of their first article in The Tyee....
There are few things more beautiful than a well lit garden at night time. Unfortunately, design-conscious gardeners have had a difficult choice to make. Hard wired garden lamps can be beautiful, but installation is expensive, and the incandescent bulbs they use often burn through serious energy. On the other hand, solar/LED lamps are cheap, and power themselves, but the style choices look like something out of an in-flight magazine. Faux verdigris painted plastic? No thanks. ...
